


Lonely Wheel

by noloss



Category: Superjail!
Genre: Emetophobia, Incest, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-02
Updated: 2018-09-30
Packaged: 2018-12-22 23:34:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 27
Words: 50,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11977455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noloss/pseuds/noloss
Summary: After the twins return to their homeworld to become overlords, they have a fight. One of them leaves and one of their elder brothers keeps the remaining one company and the relationship between them drastically changes.





	1. Chapter 1

"How does it feel to be taking orders from a younger broodling?"

It had been only weeks since the Twins had been made overlords of their home planet by their father, much to the dismay of their trio of elder siblings. The twins had grown used to it relatively quickly, but duties kept the twins separated from time to time. Today was one of those days.

While one of them was away at a meeting, the other Twin was home with one of the triplets. Neither of the Twins liked being alone and so they took whatever company they could get. The gain of power made the Twins a little cruel, making their elder brothers do things for their own entertainment, much like their brothers did to them in the past.

The twin left at home laid on his back on the living room floor, ordering his elder brother to undress him for a bath. He smugly watched his elder brother's defeated face, taking extreme enjoyment in how uncomfortable he was making him. A few moments later, the twin's smile faded.

"I asked you a question."

The triplet shrugged in defeat, mumbling an almost inaudible "I don't know" under his breath, obviously very uncomfortable. He was good at keeping his temper and keeping a level head so long as he wasn't pushed too far.

"So do you like being away from your beloved brothers?"

"Eh."

Content with the replies, but not done taunting his brother, the twin stretched as his brother pulled down his stockings, fidgeting and kicking him gently in the crotch and trying to hide a smile.

Despite their offputting cruel disposition, the triplets usually held their temper well when they had to- but enough was enough and he'd hit his limit. Grabbing the twin by his hair before he could have a chance to react or protest, he swung him around and slammed him against the glass wall behind them, holding him against it with a hand around his throat for a few seconds, before gently lowering him to the ground and loosening his grip slightly, still keeping his hand where it was.

"Okay okay, I'm sorry." The twin struggled to take in enough air to talk, gasping and desperately trying to pry his elder brother's hand away from his throat to no avail. He knew he couldn't overpower him. The triplet loosened his grip a bit more but kept his hand where it was, and otherwise didn't move.

"Let's forget this happened. I bruise easily." He paused to catch his breath. "I'll tell my brother   
I fell down and hurt myself. You can go home."

"Is that so?" He tightened his grip around the twin's neck again, who let out a short squeal in response before being completely silenced. He held him against the fall firmly, kneeling over him and taking great pleasure in watching him start to shake as his face turned a deep red. The triplet looked him in the eye for a few seconds, their faces a few inches apart, before loosening his grip again.

The twin gasped for air and squeezed his elder brother's arm in some form of desperation or plea for him to stop. Unable to focus his eyesight, he looked off to the side and tried to find something to focus on in an attempt to snap out of it. His eyesight was blurred, his ears were ringing and his breathing was jagged and raspy.

"Look at me." The triplet ordered him to calmly, but the words didn't register and he didn't respond, still desperately trying to focus on anything so he could gather his composure before it was too late to do so.

The triplet gave him a few moments to follow the order before growing irritated. He sighed deeply before trailing his hand from the neck up to the twin's mouth, touching his bottom lip for a second before forcing his mouth open and sliding two fingers over his tongue. The twin bit down on his fingers in a pathetic attempt to make him recoil, but he was weak and his elder brother didn't flinch.

He slowly and gently slid his fingers down towards the twin's throat, drawing out the process as long as possible, smiling in satisfaction as the twin pleaded illegibly to stop, trying again to bite down on his hand and pry it away. He did bite hard enough to leave a mark, but the triplet remained unmoved and let his fingers linger on the back of his tongue before pushing them down his throat.

The twin froze for a moment in an attempt to steady himself and not react, but choked and gagged a few moments later, making another useless attempt to pull the hand from his mouth. His breathing became more rapid and he shook uncontrollably for a few moments before lurching forward, violently heaving and vomiting on himself.

Taking only a moment to admire what he'd done, the triplet moved around to position himself behind the twin, hand still in his mouth. He firmly put his other arm around the twin's stomach and pulled him into him before sliding his fingers back into his throat as far as he could, smiling with satisfaction as he felt the twin's shaking body against his. For a second time, the twin bent forward and vomited on the floor.

The triplet let his hand linger in the twin's mouth for a moment, content with himself, before gently removing it. The twin's breathing remained rapid and he stared blankly in front of him. Briefly letting go of him, the triplet moved to be next to the twin, turning him around and very gently pushing him onto his back, as if giving him a chance to comply willingly.

Laying on his back in a pool of his own vomit, he desperately clung onto consciousness, staring up at the ceiling as his eyes watered. The triplet calmly leaned over him while kneeled next to him.

"Look at me."

After taking a few seconds to interpret what he said, the twin tried his best to honor the demand, looking over at his elder brother's face, eyes darting around taking in his facial features before their eyes finally met and they locked themselves in eye contact. Satisfied that his request had been met, the triplet's expression softened slightly.

"You're disgusting. Pathetic." He gently pushed the twin's wet, dirty hair off of his face and tucked it behind his ears without breaking eye contact.

With no warning, the twin rolled onto his side and vomited again- this time it was mostly liquid and blood. There was nothing else left in him. After giving him a few moments, the triplet gently pushed him down onto his back again.

"Try holding your breath for a few seconds between each breath."

The twin tried his best to do what he was told- then slowly his breathing became less erratic and he slowly stopped shaking. The triplet watched him in attentive silence for a few minutes as he regulated his breathing.

Eventually exhaustion took over, the twin's eyes closed and his body went limp. Watching him for a few seconds, the triplet sighed before dragging him out of the pile of his own filth and picking him up to move him to the bathroom.

To the best of his ability, the triplet cleaned him up, changing him out of his dirty clothes into a plain t-shirt and shorts, stopping to check every few minutes to make sure he was still breathing. He gently wiped the twin's face and hair clean, trying his best not to wake him. When he was through he picked him up and carried him to the living room sofa, gently placing him down before cleaning up the mess they'd left.

Cleaning the last of the floor, he reflected on his actions. Maybe he overdid it.

 

The triplet decided to stay and keep watch over his younger brother. Sat in a chair next to the sofa, he flipped through some magazines in boredom as the hours passed. Every so often he'd check to make sure the twin was still breathing normally.

It was hard to keep track of time on their home planet- with it getting dark around the equivalent of two in the afternoon and staying dark until seven in the morning, days tallied in an impressive seventeen hours of darkness- but this was normal and it didn't slow the city down. There were no natural sleep cycles, and sleep wasn't important to most people. The twins were some of the very few who could be allowed the luxury of a consistent full night's sleep- most others had busy schedules and quotas they needed to meet to stay alive.

After a couple more hours, the twin stirred and stretched out, eyes slowly opening. The triplet watched him silently for a few minutes as he woke up and came to his senses.

"Where am I?" The twin turned his head to look at his elder brother for a moment, who pretended to busy himself skimming through a magazine. His voice was raspy and uncomfortable to listen to. He put his head back down and sunk into the sofa. It must have hurt to talk.

"Home." The triplet replied and waited for a response, but didn't get one. "How are you feeling?"

"Bad." The twin replied a few seconds later as if he had to gather the energy to speak. He laid curled on his side on the sofa, staring off in the opposite direction of the triplet.

"I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

"Don't you remember?" The triplet was skeptical. His younger brother probably wanted him to painstakingly recount what happened out loud for his own enjoyment.

"I don't."

"It'll come to you." He really didn't want to be forced to think about what happened and didn't for a second believe the twin didn't remember. He thought about it in his head and no matter how he tried he realized he couldn't sugar coat it either.

"Tell me."

There was a short pause. The triplet slowly took a deep breath and exhaled as he thought carefully about his response. He wasn't eloquent with words. They both knew this.

"Do you really not remember or are you pitying me?"

The twin slowly turned onto his stomach to face his elder brother and frowned. "I don't remember. Tell me."

They made eye contact for a second- the triplet realized he wasn't messing around with him. The twin looked genuinely lost and frustrated.

"Well..." He paused and put the magazine he held on the coffee table as an act of compliance and attentiveness to the situation. "I choked you, you threw up all over yourself, then you passed out."

"Why?" The twin stared at him vacantly, but he didn't look back.

"I just... have my limits on how much I can put up with."

"Did I do something?"

"Don't worry about it."

The twin continued to stare at him in silence for a few moments. "So why are you still here?"

"To make sure you aren't dead."

"That's kind of you. Thank you." The twin smiled and turned onto his side, stretching before hugging his knees. As he talked more, his voice became more clear, but it still hurt to talk and the triplet could tell.

"Where's my brother?" The twin asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Don't you remember? It was his turn to attend a council meeting in one of the neighboring cities."

"Oh..."

"He should be back soon." The twin didn't respond. They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Please go easy on me when you tell father about this."

The twin didn't respond to his elder brother's request. He didn't know how to interpret the lack of a reply, but wasn't going to press it.

"I'm not feeling well." The twin admitted, staring off into the distance. He had a look of sadness and exhaustion that was even unsettling for his elder brother to witness. It was weird to see him like this.

"Is there anything I can do for you? Do you want anything?"

"No."

"Water? Food?" He paused. "Well I can't cook, actually. But I can find something."

"No."

There was a pause before the triplet responded. "Anything? Do you want me to run a bath for you?"

"No."

There was more silence before the twin continued talking. "You can go home if you want."

The triplet didn't take the words at face value and felt like he was being lured into a trap. He didn't dare leave him alone right now.

"I'll stay until your brother's back."

"You're my brother."

"You know what I mean."

The twin smiled to himself before stretching again and slowly closing his eyes. His arm slowly slid off the side of the sofa onto the floor as he fell asleep again.

 

A few hours passed- the triplet must have fallen asleep as well, as they both awoke to the sound of a door opening. The other twin stepped inside, removing his boots and cloak before looking up angrily at the triplet, still sitting in the chair next to the sofa.

"Leave. Get out." He demanded as both the triplet and sick twin were still in the process of waking up.

"Get _out_!" The twin ordered again, as his brother struggled to sit upright on the sofa.

"Calm down. He was looking after me." His voice was still audibly raspy. The triplet imagined it must have hurt a lot to talk.

The angry twin threw his cloak on the ground and stormed into the kitchen. "What did he do to you? I know he did something. He did _something_." Picking up a ceramic mug off of a hook, hurling it as hard as he could at the triplet, but it missed and crashed onto the floor, shattering and littering debris everywhere. In obvious pain, the other twin struggled to stand up and walked to the kitchen as quick as he could to stop his brother.

"Stop it, he didn't do anything."

Overcome with rage, the other twin took down another mug. Before he had a chance to throw it, his brother knocked him to the ground, weakly trying to grab the mug from his hand.

"Stop it!"

The angry twin clawed at his brother's arm. Weak but not discouraged, he tried his best to subdue his raging brother, who dropped the mug on the floor. With his now free hand, he slapped his sick and struggling brother across the face.

Eventually, the triplet decided to step in, briskly walking over and forcibly pulling them off of and away from each other. The sick twin staggered and struggled to get to his feet, gritting his teeth with eyes full of tears.

"Cool it, both of you." The triplet raised his voice slightly, which was out of character for him.

"Shut up or I'll kill you! Don't say a word to me unless you're spoken to!" The angry twin snapped in reply, taking a few steps back and rubbing his arm.

"If you lay a hand on him I'll tell father."

The triplet held onto the sick twin's arm to keep him from falling over, ready to physically defend him if need be. The twins, both out of breath from the ordeal, stared at each other for a few seconds before the angry one opened the china cabinet, throwing plates and cups onto the floor in a fit of rage. With every crash, the sick twin flinched and the triplet instinctively squeezed his arm- but since he was throwing the china onto the floor, he felt it was best to let him run his course and wear himself out rather than risk enraging him even more.

Eventually he slowed down, throwing one last plate at the wall, before grabbing his boots and storming back out the front door, slamming it so hard that the house shook. The sick twin leaned against the triplet, trying to catch his breath and get a grip on the situation.

"I need to sit down."

The triplet gently held onto his arm and slowly started to guide him back out into the living room. With debris everywhere, he decided it was safer to lift the twin up and carry him rather than risk him stepping on glass and cutting himself. He didn't want to be responsible for any more than he already was. The twin put up no fight in being picked up. Gently, the triplet placed him back down on the sofa.

"I'll go get everything cleaned up."

"Don't worry about it. We have workers for that kind of thing."

The triplet sighed silently. He was basically a worker himself. During the past few weeks that the twins had been overlords, they'd had all of the triplets be on standby in case they needed anything or anyone to humiliate. They basically worked for their younger brothers.

He went back out into the kitchen to get a glass of water for the twin, realizing he was probably too stubborn to ask for it himself. He must have needed something to drink by now. The triplet carefully placed the glass on the coffee table in front of the twin, then took his seat on the chair next to the sofa where he was before. The two sat in silence for a couple minutes as the twin sipped his water, stopping to cough every few moments.

"How are you feeling?"

The twin took another sip of water and struggled not to cough or choke on it. The triplet watched with uneasiness as his younger brother tried to swallow.

"Okay."

"Why don't you head to bed?" The triplet asked him. "We can worry about this tomorrow."

"Are you leaving?"

The triplet paused for a second. "I don't think I should leave you alone." There was no answer.

"Does your brother do this often?" He continued.

"Never. Maybe he felt me hurt. That's no excuse to act like that though."

"What do you mean?"

The twin frowned. "You and your brothers don't feel each other's pain?"

"No."

"Strange." His expression softened for a moment before he frowned again. "I hate him now though. I hope I cut myself on this glass so he can feel what he did."

The triplet rolled his eyes in response and leaned back in his chair, looking down at all the broken glass and ceramic on the floor. "Well if you want me to stay here until he comes back... or until you feel better, I will."

The twin took a few moments to think of a reply. "I don't want to be alone."

"Alright."

They sat in silence as the twin struggled to finish his water.

"Can you help me to bed? I'm tired."

"Of course." The triplet stood up, carefully picking up his younger brother and navigating his way carefully around the shards. To the left of the television set was a small hallway- at the end of the hallway was the twins' bedroom. On the right side of the hallway were two doors; a closet and a large bathroom.

The triplet gently opened the bedroom door and placed his younger brother on the bed.

"Are you going to bed as well?"

"In a while."

"I'll leave the bedroom door unlocked then." The twin situated himself under the covers and curled up, watching the triplet with obvious exhaustion.

"Oh.. I'm just going to sleep on the sofa." The thought of sharing the bed was a little strange to him. The twin probably knew that and said it just to make him feel uncomfortable.

"Really? It's not very comfortable." The twin frowned but otherwise didn't move.

"It's fine. Do you need anything else?"

"No."

"Well, good night."

The triplet gently closed the door and pensively stood in the hallway as he took in the night's events. He wondered if the twin would remember any of this in the morning. He wondered if it would be in his best interest to just leave and go home, but he couldn't help but wonder where the other twin had went for the night. He could go anywhere he wanted, but their father was currently off on another planet and apparently neither of the twins liked being alone. Maybe he had went to go stay with the other two triplets.

He decided to clean up the house to the best of his ability before calling it a night.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Unable to sleep, the twin stirred awake an hour or so after he'd been put to bed. He leaned over to turn the light on- wincing and immediately regretting the decision, turning it back off when he realized he wasn't getting used to the light. Carefully, he grabbed his pillow and got up, slowly shuffling to the door in the pitch black and out into the house.

The triplet was peacefully fast asleep on the sofa, and from the looks of it he'd cleaned up all of the broken kitchenware littered around the house. He snored frighteningly loud- the twin stared at him uneasily for a minute or so hoping he'd stop on his own accord, or that he'd sense the twin's displeasure, but he did not. Sighing, he threw a blanket over the triplet, dropped his pillow on the ground and shuffled off to the bathroom to get a pair of ear plugs.

The twin could vaguely see his reflection in the bathroom mirror without the light on- his skin was dry, his hair clumped together. He felt disgusting, but he'd deal with that tomorrow. Grabbing a pair of ear plugs out of a drawer, it kicked in how much pain he was in. His body ached, mainly his upper body, neck and shoulders. It was a dull pain and it was manageable, but it made him slow and uncomfortable.

He slowly made his way back out to the living room. Still snoring, the triplet hadn't moved from where he was before. He must sleep like a rock- either that or he was completely exhausted.

The front half of the house's walls were glass, letting in an enormous amount of light from the city at all hours. The twin wondered how his elder brother could sleep with it being as bright as it was. Their bedroom was purposely built with no windows so the problem was avoided altogether for them.

After giving the triplet a few minutes to see if he'd stop snoring, the twin sighed, put his ear plugs in and carefully laid down on the floor next to the sofa with his pillow.

The wooden floor did no favors for the pain he was in, but he was stubborn and stayed where he was, shifting around every few minutes. He turned to face the sofa, in awe of his elder brother being able to sleep so peacefully. Once the twin got situated and stopped moving around, he fell into a very light sleep.

Unfortunately, he woke up an hour or so later in even more pain than he'd went to sleep in. The sun was coming up now and it would have been impossible for him to get back to sleep. Eventually he gave up and carefully got to his feet.

As he did every day, he made a pot of coffee and got food delivered. Though they had an impressive kitchen, neither of the twins knew how to or really cared for cooking. The kitchen was more of a novelty. He sat in the kitchen and ate slowly, staring out the window down at the city below them, waiting for the triplet to wake up.

An hour later, the triplet stretched and leaned up, holding his head in his hands for a minute as he struggled to wake up. As he turned to sit, he saw the pillow on the ground next to him and turned his attention to the kitchen where the twin gave him a faint wave "hello". Rubbing his eyes, the triplet slowly got up and made his way to the kitchen where the twin gestured to the food on the counter.

"You cook?"

The twin shook his head no in response. "Delivered." His voice was even raspier today and uncomfortable to listen to. "I would have waited for you to wake up to eat, but I don't know what time you wake up."

The triplet looked through a couple of paper boxes on the counter and grabbed a muffin before taking a seat next to the twin. Their planet had a lot of cultural influence from earth, lots of it had come with the twins when they returned home. A lot of the food they liked was made available here. Since they came back as overlords, if they wanted something, it happened.

He could see now that the twin's neck had started to form an unsightly bruise on itself overnight. The bruise carried downwards, hidden by the t-shirt that the twin was put in.

"What?" The twin looked over at his older brother, acutely aware that he was staring at him.

"How are you feeling?" The triplet asked uneasily, trying to address the twin's question while avoiding the subject.

"Poorly."

"I think you should just rest today."

The triplet was uncertain about what his younger brother may have remembered happening yesterday and he didn't want to go into it in detail if it could be avoided. The first step to getting everything back to normal would be for the twin to physically recover from the ordeal. Everything else they could worry about later.

Having nothing further to say to each other, they sat in silence for a while. The triplet didn't want to instigate conversation- the twin's voice was almost physically painful to listen to in the state it was in. Eventually the twin very carefully got up to his feet, holding onto the kitchen counter for support.

"Can you walk okay?"

"Yeah." The twin inhaled deeply as if he wanted to continue talking but lacked the energy to do so. He dragged himself over to the living room, turned on the television and curled up on the sofa. The triplet grabbed another muffin from the box. He rarely had the opportunity to eat real food- which was mostly a choice, as none of the triplets particularly ate very healthy. They couldn't cook and usually just went out for food.

He started to think about how different their lives were from the twins', wondering if they had any duties they should be doing that he wasn't aware of. He had a lot to ask about, but didn't want to make his younger brother talk right now. Instead, he decided he'd give his brothers a call and see if they knew what was going on yet. He got up and went into the bathroom to make the call in private.

"Yeah, he's with us. He showed up last night while we were sleeping, but had no second thoughts about waking us up."

The triplet sighed as he listened to one of his broodlings describe what happened over the phone.

"I see. Still, be nice to him. Neither of them are that bad."

"Don't get soft on us. Besides, Ozzal knows he's staying here with us."

"So you talked to father?"

"Briefly. He's very busy."

"Do you think I should call him?"

"Give it a few days. I'm sure the twins will get tired of being apart soon and everything will get back to normal. No use risking enraging Ozzal until then."

The triplet ran his fingers through his hair and let out a stressed sigh. "Okay... call if there are any problems."

"Sure." The other triplet said sarcastically, hanging up.

It didn't sound bad, but the triplet had just as many questions now as when he called first. He paced around the bathroom for a few minutes thinking about the call before going back out into the living room, the twin still curled up on the sofa where he was before, staring in the direction of the television. The triplet again saw the bruise on his neck and sighed- deciding not to tell the twin about the phone conversation he just had so that he could rest his voice.

The triplet went out into the kitchen and pondered for a moment before taking a canister of salt down from a shelf and mixing some with warm water in a cup before walking it over awkwardly to the twin, who sat up attentively as the triplet approached him.

"Here, try gargling this." He kneeled on the ground to be eye level with the twin and handed him the small cup. "Don't swallow it, spit it back out into the cup after."

"Why?"

"It'll help with your throat. Please stop talking. I can tell it hurts to."

The triplet watched carefully as he raised the cup up to his lips, taking a sip and putting his head back to gargle it- only to choke, leaning forward involuntarily to cough it up all over himself. The triplet frowned, briefly considering putting a hand on his back to help calm him down, but ultimately deciding not to. The twin's eyes watered and his face turned red as his coughing fit slowly stopped. He looked genuinely distraught and embarrassed over what just happened.

"Bad idea, I guess." The triplet took the cup from him and brought it back out to the kitchen. "Just try to take it easy."

Easier said than done, but the twin tried his best, curling back up where he was before. Frustrated with himself, he felt tears forming in his eyes and turned away from the television, burying his face in the sofa. After watching him for a few moments, the triplet forced himself to look away, knowing his younger brother didn't want him staring at him while he was frustrated.

He paced around the kitchen, half paying attention to a news story on television about a collapsed crystal mine a few cities away from theirs. He realized his brothers didn't mention him on the phone- meaning he wasn't sure if Ozzal knew he was staying up in the house with the sick twin. He had a feeling without explicit permission from the twin, Ozzal wouldn't be happy about it. They still got along with their father alright after the twins had been made overlords, but their relationship was more business based than it used to be, which was alright with them. Ozzal still provided most anything that the triplets asked for and they didn't need to see him as often.

Visibly stressed, the triplet ran a hand through his hair, forcibly yanking a knot out from the bottom, looking over to make sure the twin didn't see him do it. He had really ought to go visit his brothers to get a grip on what was going on, but he didn't want to leave the twin alone- or rather he felt he shouldn't do so.

Bargaining with himself, he decided he could go out and pick up some things for a sore throat remedy.

"Hey... do you think you'll be okay alone for an hour? I want to go get some things for your throat."

The triplet walked over to the living room slowly and the twin picked his head up a little, consciously facing away from his elder brother. He could see the that he'd been crying, but he wasn't going to press it.

"Will you come back?"

"Well yeah, I'm going out to get things for you." There was a long stretch of silence.

"Thank you."

One of the other triplets agreed to meet him mall while the other one stayed home with the other twin. The two triplets punched each other's shoulders in friendly greeting upon meeting up.

"Crazy shit is happening." The triplet that agreed to meet him laughed energetically. Though the triplets would fight amongst themselves a lot, it was healthy and ultimately they got along well. They'd get in a fair amount of fist fights but they always laughed it off.

"Yeah," He replied. "I wanted to ask though, what did he tell you guys and Ozzal?"

"Basically he told Ozzal he decided to stay with us and Ozzal told us not to kill him."

"Did the twin say anything about me?"

"No. In fact I don't think Ozzal knows you're staying up there with the other one."

"Probably for the best." He sighed. "So... how's he doing? _Your_  twin."

"He's a punk. We both want to deck him in the face."

"He can't be that bad." The triplet sighed. "Just... don't kill him."

"Yeah, that's about all I can promise. He's a pain. He hates being alone. He begged one of us to stay with him. We would have brought him with us, but he wouldn't have it... What did you do to him?"

"It's complicated." He took a piece of poorly folded up paper out of his pocket and unfolded it. "Hey, help me find ginger and lemons."

They went their separate ways after the got caught up and did some shopping. The triplet arrived back home with a paper bag full of goods he read he'd need to make a sore throat remedy. A lot of produce they had on their home planet was sourced from other planets and hadn't been available there very long. Despite a very predictable and unchanging climate, it would easily be manipulated to grow most anything they wanted once they had a sample of it.

The triplet walked through the front door to find the twin where he left him, curled up in a blanket staring at the television. The twin shifted his attention to his elder brother as he heard him come through the front door.

"You came back." He sat up, voice still as raspy as before.

"I wasn't gone for that long, was I?" It was hard to keep track of time when it was dark most of the time, but he figured he was only gone for an hour or so. He walked the bag over to the kitchen counter and gently dropped the ingredients onto it.

"Well no, I just didn't think you'd come back."

"Oh..."

The twin steadied himself in an attempt to get up.

"No, stay where you are." The triplet realized he twin probably had bigger problems than a sore throat. If he didn't rest, his health would probably get worse.

The triplet started preparing ingredients for the drink he was making- chopping up things and putting them into a pot with boiling water. The twin was sitting up, resting his head on the back of the sofa. He looked exhausted. The triplet hoped he was alright while he was gone, but it didn't look like he moved at all.

When the liquid was gone cooking, he poured some into a mug and walked it over to the twin.

"Drink it, it'll make you feel better." He sat down on the sofa next to him and carefully handed him the mug. The twin took small sips, swallowing with great difficulty, but he managed.

"Take your time."

He sat next to the twin to watch over him as he carefully and slowly drank. Over the course of five or so minutes, the twin slowly finished the drink, holding onto the now empty mug to enjoy the last of its warmth.

"You did good." the triplet said, taking the mug from him. He was relieved the twin could finish the drink and was willing to. Even if it did help, he still worried about the twin's diminishing energy and body pain. Hopefully sleeping would help with that.

The twin's eyes widened a little. "I did good?"

"Yeah. I just hope it helps. Try not to talk for a while. Let this stuff do its thing."

Seemingly pleased with himself, the twin smiled as he watched his elder brother return to the kitchen. He sank back down into the sofa and started to yawn until he realized how much it stung to do so. He let his arm dangle off the side as he laid on his stomach, quickly becoming exhausted.

After cleaning the kitchen, the triplet walked back out to the living room to check on the twin.

"I think you should head to bed."

The twin let out a soft sigh before slowly sitting up and getting to his feet.

"Careful."

"I can walk fine." The twin said as he actively demonstrated the opposite, almost tripping over the coffee table in front of him. Frustrated, he froze for a second. The triplet looked the other way and pretended to busy himself, trying to avoid making his younger sibling self conscious. After the twin froze to regain composure, he was fine, and walked slowly to his bedroom before turning around and offering a small, sad wave goodbye to the triplet, who waved back.

After the twin shut himself in his room, the triplet realized how exhausted he was. Despite sleeping well, he woke up hours before he usually would.

He tried some of the leftover drink he'd prepared earlier. It wasn't good, but it tasted like it would help. He was surprised the twin managed to drink it without complaining about it.

After making sure the house was tidy, he laid down on the sofa and fell into a light sleep almost immediately.

  
What could have only been an hour later, the triplet woke up to the sound of a door opening and closing shortly after. Usually nothing could wake him up, but stress made it hard to stay asleep. The twin emerged from his bedroom and laid down on the floor where he did the previous night, unaware that his elder brother had woken up. After some time had passed, the triplet looked over to see the twin presumably asleep on the floor. He sighed quietly and got up as carefully as he could, picking up his younger brother and gently placing him down on the couch, hoping not to wake him, before taking his place on the floor. He wasn't a fussy sleeper, and within minutes he had fallen back asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The twin showed solid signs of recovery after getting another night's sleep- he was in less pain, it hurt less to talk. He laid on the sofa, the triplet prompting conversations with him for the sake of making him talk, but only half listening to what he was saying, flipping through a book. Throughout the day, the twin continued to recover and his elder brother finally relaxed a little- at least until he would accidentally keep looking at the bruise on the twin's shoulder. Neither one of mentioned it.

It was late and about time for them to be heading to bed. Tomorrow the triplet wanted to talk to him about the situation they were in- see if it was time for the other twin to return home, find out what kind of duties the twin had to do as an overlord, maybe set the story straight with their father so there would be no surprises if he came home for a visit.

After helping the twin to bed, the triplet laid down on the sofa and closed his eyes. He felt exhausted, he hadn't been getting as much sleep as he was used to, but he found it was even more difficult for him to fall asleep tonight.

Like the previous night, after a while had passed, he heard the now familiar sound of the twin's bedroom door opening and closing shortly after. The twin, again, slowly walked out and laid on the floor next to the sofa.

After a few minutes, the triplet ran a hand down his face in frustration and sat up.

"Come on, the floor's not good to sleep on."

There was no response. The triplet sighed, knowing full well the twin was still awake. He stood up, gently picked the twin up and walked towards the hall to put him back in his bed.

"Stop it, put me down." The twin demanded, squirming in his elder brother's arms to no avail. Frustrated with the immediate lack of compliance, the twin reached out and grabbed one of his horns, trying to throw him off his balance.

"Cut it out." There was frustration in the triplet's voice.

"Put me down. I mean it. I demand it." Equally as frustrated, the twin jerked his elder brother's head around by one of his horns and kicked at him. Deciding enough was enough, the triplet loosened his grip and let his younger brother fall clumsily to the floor. He bent down and kneeled over him, grabbing him by the shoulders and slamming his head into the wall behind him, gritting his teeth, before pulling him forward and slamming him into the wall again with more force.

"Please..."

The triplet froze as the twin tried to speak, as if his voice grounded him and made him aware of what he was doing. As if to level with him, the twin weakly put his hand over top of his elder brother's, who still had him pinned against the wall. The triplet loosened his grip but still held on, scared the twin would collapse to either side once he took his hands off of him.

It wasn't fun this time. He finally gathered the courage to look the twin in the eyes, and the twin stared right through him, his entire body jerking with fear.

"Please don't kill me."

Taken aback but not knowing what to do, the triplet squeezed his shoulders gently before letting go and looking down at him.

"I won't. I wouldn't." The triplet's voice cracked as even he struggled to maintain his composure. For a few moments, they both stayed frozen in the dark, scared for different reasons.

"I think I should go home." He decided he was doing the twin no favors by staying here. He couldn't live with himself if he stayed and kept giving himself the opportunity to hurt him. The first time he didn't fear the consequences- but this time felt profoundly different and he couldn't figure out why.

The twin inhaled sharply and looked up at his elder brother, making eye contact with him before shaking his head no desperately.

"I don't want to be alone."

The triplet felt his heart sink. This wasn't right.

"Look, we'll get your brother back here and get everything back to normal. You won't need to hear from me again." The triplet spoke softly.

"No. No." The twin desperately learned forward, putting his arms around the triplet and falling into him.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. Don't go home." He buried his face in the triplet's chest with his arms still around him, letting himself go limp. The triplet gently pat him on the head- he wanted to console him but at the same time it didn't feel right to. He ran his fingers through the twin's hair. This was the same person he was inches away from killing two minutes ago.

He decided he hated himself. He hated his behaviour, his lack of self control and lack of empathy.

The twin pulled away from him slightly, keeping his forehead pressed against his chest.

"Come to bed with me. Let's just forget any of this happened."

The triplet didn't know what to do in response.

"I'm sorry." The twin continued. "Let's go to bed."

The triplet took a few deep breaths before replying to make sure he could talk clearly. "I don't think you'd want that."

"Please. I'm sorry." The twin sounded exhausted, on the verge of breaking into tears. The triplet sighed in awkward defeat, not knowing how to say no to him. He carefully got to his feet, helping his younger brother up in the process. Filled with different kinds of sadness, they shut themselves in the bedroom and got into bed together.

After what he did, the triplet couldn't bring himself to look at the twin- even if he could, the room was pitch black. The twin curled up underneath the covers next to him, close enough where he could feel the twin's breath on his neck. He breathed slowly and steadily, finally relaxed.

"You're warm. It's nice." The twin said almost inaudibly.

The triplet reflected again on how close he was to killing him before- yet now he was curled up next to him like it didn't happen. They both had issues they needed to work out. Not only was the triplet unsure if he should leave, now he wasn't sure if he wanted to leave. He wasn't sure how to fix what was going on but he couldn't live with himself if he up and left.

To his surprise, he started to relax after a few minutes. The twin's breath on him was calming, something rhythmic to focus on in the dark and featureless room. For a while, he fought with sleep, trying to stay awake long as he could to think as long as possible. Eventually he lost the battle and fell into a comfortable slumber.


	4. Chapter 4

"So you and your brothers aren't soul bonded?"

The triplet had made a meek request to try their hand at baking- just as something for them to do that was distracting and engaging.

"I don't even know what soul bonding is." The triplet responded as he watched his younger brother cut up fruit for a pie.

"It's hard to explain because it's just... something that's always been. Like, it's not something that happened, it's something that's been there with us." He paused. "If one of us hurts ourselves the other one usually feels remnants of the pain. The further we are from each other, the more pain is shared. Sometimes we feel nothing. When we came back to this planet and learned to be separated from each other, we took greater care to be responsible with ourselves."

The triplet watched him carefully to try and gauge how comfortable he was talking about his brother. At this point he wasn't sure if he should avoid bringing him up in conversation. He didn't know what their relationship was like right now. It was hard to imagine. He was only half paying attention to what the twin was actually trying to explain about soul bonding.

"Watch this. He's going to feel this." The twin took the knife he was using to cut up the fruit and gripped the blade in his hand before ripping it out, leaving a gruesome but tidy looking incision across the base of his hand. Immediately light headed, the triplet rushed into the bathroom to get some bandages. He should have been listening to the conversation and saw this coming.

"Why would you do that? Don't do shit like that." Visibly stressed as he returned, the triplet gently cleaned his hand with a cloth before starting to bandage it up. The twin watched him, pleased with himself, shifting his focus between his elder brother and his hand.

"I needed to prove a point."

"What point? What do you gain from hurting yourself?"

The twin's smile faded and he frowned. "I thought you'd think it was cool. I've had worse things happen to me than a small cut recently."

The triplet's heart sank, and to the best of his ability he tried not to let the comment physically affect him. He finished bandaging up the twin's hand, putting pressure on the incision for a few moments before loosening his grip, then taking his hand completely off it. This was followed by an awkward silence.

"Sorry, I was joking. Dark humor." Trying not to skip a beat, the twin returned to his baking tasks. Now the triplet desperately hoped the other twin wasn't going to try and get even.

Together, they managed to put together an unsightly fruit pie and get it in the oven.

"I've been meaning to ask if there's anything you should be doing." The triplet switched gears as he cleaned up the counter, trying to switch topics completely.

"Not really. We do that we want for the most part. What we do have to do is either fun or boring, but not hard."

"Want to tell me about it?" The triplet needed something to focus on- but more importantly he wanted to make sure his little brother wasn't shirking any duties he ought to be doing.

"Well if the orders don't come from Ozzal, I don't need to do them, seriously." He walked over to the window and looked out over the city. "Checking up on the crystal mines is fun though, we should do that. There's always something weird going on there. If not there, then the labs."

The triplet shivered.

"Other than that, we... I'm basically a king. I put in appearances, settle disputes and look pretty. You should join me next time."

He turned around to look at the triplet and his eyes widened, very obviously excited about something.

"In fact... in fact, let me take your measurements, we can get you a uniform made like the one I have."

The triplet laughed nervously. "Oh no, it's alright. I don't know if I'll be staying here long enough to bother." He couldn't think of a convincing way to get out of this.

"It'll be fun!" The visible excitement in his eyes made it hard for the triplet to protest. This really, really wasn't something he was interested in doing.

"Alright." He couldn't bring himself to deny the twin- and agreeing to this now didn't mean he'd go through with it. Maybe the twin would get distracted and forget about it.

The twin's face lit up. He grabbed his elder brother's hand and led him to the bedroom.

"What are you doing?"

"Measuring you."

"Right now?"

The twin rummaged through one of the drawers next to the bed and got out a box with some measuring tapes and papers in it, setting it down on the bed and shutting the door.

"Yes, right now. I know what I'm doing."

The triplet wasn't sure what he was getting himself into.

"Take your clothes off."

Now the regret started to set in.

"Yeah... no."

The twin frowned at him, not expecting that response. "Come on, we need accuracy here."

"Not happening. Just take a centimeter or so off."

"No can do. Come on, it's just me."

"It's not happening. I'm sorry." The triplet laughed nervously and crossed his arms.

"Fine, we'll get a tailor to do it instead."

"That's just as bad."

The twin sighed and smiled hopefully, trying to make eye contact with the triplet, but he was actively and awkwardly avoiding eye contact.

"Please?"

"No. Sorry, I'm not budging on this."

 

After a fair amount of begging and guilt tripping, the twin finally got what he wanted much to the dismay of his elder brother, who was standing up against the wall awkwardly staring off to the side with his clothes on the floor. The twin carefully measured him, pulling the measuring tape around his chest and carefully taking notes.

The twin paused, measuring tape still around him.

"If... I'm really making you uncomfortable, tell me to stop. I'll listen. You don't need to... get physical over it."

"It's fine." This was all the triplet could muster up as a response. He wouldn't hurt him. This was something that was making him happy. The thought of hurting him again made him feel ill. As he started to focus less on his own self-consciousness and more on his little brother being happy, he managed to relax a little.

"I'm sorry for how I act." The twin said as he continued measuring, carefully observing and writing down numbers on a sheet of paper. He had beautiful handwriting.

"It's fine."

The twin looked up at him with a melancholic sadness, but he didn't look back. "It's not fine. I'm a brat. I'm obnoxious. I'm aware of it, we both are."

The triplet didn't want to start an argument or upset him and struggled for a response.

"What does that make me then? I almost killed you."

"It's okay."

"It's not okay." The triplet looked down at him- now the twin was the one avoiding eye contact. The twin forced a smile as he continued to take measurements and otherwise didn't respond, obviously not wanting to continue the conversation.

"See, this isn't so bad, is it? It's okay." The twin measured around his stomach. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"Are you self conscious about yourself? Is that the problem?" The twin tried to make eye contact again to level with him, but he wasn't having it.

"I guess."

The twin kneeled down to measure his thighs.

"Alright, I definitely am. I'm sorry. I can't even look at myself." The triplet swallowed nervously as he admitted it. He didn't like feeling vulnerable. The twin looked up at him and frowned.

"Shut up, you're fine." He continued measuring. "You're strong. I'm jealous."

The triplet didn't respond, embarrassed he admitted anything in the first place.

"Like, I feel safe and comfortable around you."

He must have been joking. The triplet felt like the last person anyone should feel safe around. It wasn't a conversation he wanted to have though, so he didn't respond to this either.

"Have a little faith in yourself."

The rest of the measuring was done in silence- first uncomfortable, then the triplet started to relax. This wasn't so bad. It made his little brother happy.

"That should be good. See, it wasn't so bad, was it?"

"It was kind of bad." The triplet smiled lightheartedly as he got dressed. "You have to make it up to me."

The twin smiled as he watched him, intrigued. "Okay. How?"

The triplet gestured for him to lift his bandaged hand and held it sternly in his. "Don't do this shit again."

The twin laughed as if it were a joke. The triplet tightened his grip in response. The twin stopped when he realized he was serious, sort of taken aback by his elder brother showing concern for him. When he cut his hand he thought they'd both get a kick out of it.

"Sorry, I just thought it would be funny." He looked up at his elder brother and met his gaze.

"Your hands are warm." The twin stood still for a few moments. To the triplet's surprise, he gently pulled his hand back and let go, then went to sit on the far side of the bed and looked over the notes he took, smiling to himself. The triplet watched- it was nice to see him excited over something.

Every time the triplet saw him happy over something, he remembered how he hurt him. The twin turned his head slightly, sensing the triplet staring at him, but didn't look his way.

"If I can do anything to make you feel better about yourself, let me know."

"Yeah, don't make me wear a stupid uniform." He joked, forcing himself to laugh to lighten the mood. "I'm joking."

"Well, I'm serious." The twin toned down his excitement. "I think quite highly of you. I appreciate you humoring me with all of this."

The triplet took a moment to realize this was probably the closest the twin has ever been to being alone in his life. His brother had basically abandoned him, and up until then they had been inseparable. He probably thought the triplet was going to abandon him as well.

He decided he'd hang around as long as he was wanted there.


	5. Chapter 5

They ate dinner together at the kitchen counter. Cooking was a novelty that had worn off temporarily when they found out how awful their pie had turned out- so they had ordered food tonight instead. They'd try cooking another night.

The twin looked over at the triplet as he ate- and the triplet felt him staring at him. He looked in his direction uneasily, waiting for him to say something.

"Are you... letting your hair grow out?"

"Yeah." The triplet had trouble swallowing his food- suddenly very self conscious about the question.

"I thought it just... grew like how you had it. Does it not?" The twin asked, staring at his elder brother's head.

"No. We cut it to make our horns look bigger. That's how it's always been, I don't know why. It's just what we've always done."

"Oh... why change then?"

"Don't know." The triplet couldn't finish his meal. He lost his appetite increasingly easily as time went on.

"I think it looks nice."

The twin continued to pick at his own food. Within a few minutes the triplet's nerves calmed down and he managed to resume eating. After a few moments, the twin dropped his fork on the table. His elder brother looked over at him instinctively as he slowly clutched his stomach and fell to the floor.

Panicked, the triplet kneeled down next to him, not entirely sure what happened.

"What are you doing to me?" The twin asked as he clutched his stomach in obvious physical pain.

"I'm not doing anything, are you okay?" He watched the twin wincing and shaking in pain, unsure of what he should do to help. The twin's nose started bleeding as he laid on his back, first trying to straighten himself out, then desperately gripping his stomach again in pain.

"Please stop. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." The twin choked back tears and sobbed.

"I'm not doing anything. I don't know what to do." Nearly paralyzed in fear, the triplet watched his little brother but couldn't bring himself to move.

The twin rolled onto his side, facing away from his elder brother and vomited onto the floor with no warning. He grabbed at his own face, as if horrified by his own actions and desperately trying to control himself. Evidently having a hard time breathing, he gasped for air as tears fell down his face and he clutched his stomach again. He made an attempt to sit up, but couldn't bring himself to.

"Should I get your brother?"

"No." The twin was in borderline hysterics. His nosebleed got worse, his face turned white. "What do you want from me? I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I won't do it again. Please stop hurting me."

The triplet was seeing anguish from a different point of view, and it wasn't fun. It was heartbreaking to see his younger brother like this now. He hated himself for ever hurting him. The remnants of what he'd done wouldn't leave the twin. He must have really scarred him. It was like seeing the situation from a completely different person's point of view, and he hated it as much as he hated himself.

It took every ounce of self control for him to maintain composure. He didn't want to make the situation worse by panicking.

"Hey, please look at me." He tried not to let his voice reflect how nervous he was and spoke as calmly as he could. "I'm not doing this. I'm here to help."

The triplet put his hands on the twin's shoulders gently- the twin flinched before looking up at him.

"I'm sorry." The twin sobbed uncontrollably. The triplet gently pulled the twin up, holding him close and trying to stabilize him. He was sweating, but alarmingly cool to the touch.

"It's okay." He ran his fingers through the twin's hair and continued to hold him against him. After a few minutes of silence, the twin's breathing slowed down to a more manageable rate and he stopped shaking. He put his arms around the triplet's shoulders as his breathing returned to normal, face buried in his neck. Apparently exhausting himself, the twin eventually passed out and went limp.

The triplet sat unmoving on the floor for a while, twin securely in his grip, not ready to move or think about what happened, just relieved that it seemed to be over and didn't escalate further than it did. After a while he deemed it would be more comfortable for the twin to rest somewhere else, so he very gently lifted up his limp body and walked him over to the living room, placing him upright on the sofa.

He sat down next to him and carefully wiped the blood from off of his face. His body was pale and cool, but his breathing and heart rate had went back down to normal. He put an arm around the twin's shoulder to help keep him in one place as he rested. Eventually exhaustion won over the triplet as well, and he fell asleep, arm still firmly around the twin to protect him.


	6. Chapter 6

The triplet woke up some time later to find they were still exactly where they fell asleep- then looked over to find his little brother's eyes were open.

"Hey..."

The twin sluggishly turned around to face him, resting his head on the back of the sofa.

"What happened?"

"Don't you remember?"

"No." The twin's eyes widened as he looked at his elder brother. "What happened?"

"I think you had a panic attack. You dropped to the floor and were in a lot of pain. It was hard to watch."

"Why?"

"I didn't know what was happening."

The twin paused to think, staring off into the distance. He was aching and exhausted, but attentive.

"Oh... sometimes that happens when I'm away from my brother for too long. Like, a side effect of the soul bond."

"I think we should get him back home." The triplet said adamantly, staring ahead into the darkness.

"No." The twin was very firmly against it. "I hate him. Besides, it passes and then I'm fine after."

"So how do you feel now?" The triplet looked over at him.

"Tired." There was a long pause.

"So what do I do if this happens again? How can I help?"

The twin smiled weakly. "Forgive me when it's over."

A few minutes passed as they sat in the darkness. The triplet could feel his little brother staring at him, but didn't want to ask him why.

"The next time you feel bad about yourself..." The twin inhaled deeply and then smiled to himself before continuing. "Remember how useless and weak I am on my own."

"Nonsense."

There were a few minutes of silence.

"I think Ozzal purposely did this to us."

"Did what?" The triplet tilted his head to face the twin slightly.

"He made us weak on purpose." The twin paused. "He made us pretty so people would feel sorry for us. He made us inseparable so we'd have to depend on each other. Then when we're separated, I can't do anything right. I just make problems for the people around me. I have nothing going for me."

"Don't think like that." It pained the triplet to hear him talk like this.

The twin smiled sadly and turned his body to face his elder brother. "I mean, I've come to terms with it. It's not like I'm just realizing it now." He paused. "It's just I've been thinking about how you said you were self conscious..."

The triplet shook his head slightly.

"But so much good went into you. That's why you're the favorite. You're strong, you're level headed, you're rational..."

The twin reached around to put an arm around the triplet, pulling himself a little closer to him.

"I wish I could be more like you."

"No you don't."

The twin smiled. "You're efficient. You can pull your own weight. You're independent. You're--"

"I'm disgusting, I'm stupid, I'm ugly."

"Stop that. You're not stupid." The twin paused. "Father gave us superficial looks to hide our flaws. That's all we have going for us. I truly with I was more like you."

"It's not worth it, trust me."

"Stop that." The twin lowered his volume to try and ease tension.

"You haven't even seen me at my worst. I'm intolerable." The triplet was clearly becoming more upset. "I'm constantly on edge. Do you think I'm proud of constantly going into blind rages? I'm not."

The twin let out a short, stressed sigh.

"I never thought I'd have to say this, but please shut up."

He paused to see if the triplet would listen. There was silence.

"I think very highly of you. I don't want to hear you talk poorly about yourself again."

Leaning on his side, he stared at the triplet in silence before touching the far side of his neck, putting his other arm around him and pulling himself closer to him. He silently inhaled before picking his head up and very hesitantly pressing his lips against the triplet's cheek, kissing him softly.

The triplet felt his heart rate speed up with the gesture. He tried his best not to react and stay calm, not knowing what to do in response and hoping the twin couldn't sense that he was nervous.

After several seconds the twin slowly pulled away, staring at the triplet's face for a moment before resting his head on his shoulder, still turned to face him. The triplet worried now that he'd be able to feel his heart beating. If the twin did, he said nothing about it.

"Can I touch your hair?" The twin asked quietly. The triplet was hoping he was done talking- he feared his voice would shake if he had to reply.

"I guess." Of course, his voice shook as he replied.

The twin carefully ran his hands through his elder brother's hair. After a while, the triplet started to relax, his heart rate going back down as the twin continued.

"Do you have feeling in your horns? I know you don't like them being touched."

"No, nothing." He paused, thinking of how to explain. "It's a power thing. Usually if anyone touches them, it's to pull me around." He paused again. "They break easily. They grow back, but it's humiliating."

"I understand. I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

The twin stroking the triplet's hair for a few more minutes before stopping to put his arm back around him.

"You're very warm."

"That's just... how I am, I guess."

The twin smiled and closed his eyes. "I know. I like it."

The triplet could feel the twin's breathing on him- slow and steady. It was relaxing. Neither of them wanted to move or had a reason to. Eventually they both fell back asleep, sleeping peacefully until morning.


	7. Chapter 7

The triplet uncomfortably struggled into the uniform that had been made for him at the request of his younger   
brother. At first he'd agreed to have his measurements taken just to appease him, assuming it'd be a passing desire and he'd forget about it, but after a few days had passed, the uniform was made and delivered.

He really, really hated it. Uncomfortable with himself, he always avoided any sort of form fitting clothes when he could do so. The uniform fit as it was supposed to- it stuck uncomfortably to his skin, but was surprisingly easy to move around in. He changed in the bedroom rather than the bathroom so that he wouldn't have to see himself in the mirror.

The twin was waiting for him when he exited the bedroom- his eyes widened when he saw his elder brother in his new clothes. To the triplet's surprise, the reaction calmed him down a little.

"I knew this was a good idea." The twin said enthusiastically, getting off of the sofa to inspect his elder brother. A few days had passed and the twin's strength had almost fully returned. Neither one of them had mentioned the other night- when the twin had apparently had some sort of a panic attack, and later got surprisingly touchy with him. The triplet remembered everything as if it had just happened, but there wasn't a reason to bring it up. It was as if it never happened.

The twin had changed into his uniform as well. His elder brother used to hate the twin's uniforms, adamantly believing that they should have been made overlords instead, but seeing the twin in a different light changed things. Their uniforms matched, but weren't identical- the twin's a little more intricate and reminiscent of their father's uniform.

"You... look good." The twin sounded like he was struggling to contain excitement and struggled for words as he did so. He slowly walked a circle around his elder brother, looking him over attentively.

"Thank you." he said stoically. The twin's excitement did make him feel better, but he was still less than enthusiastic about the uniform. "Can I change back now?"

"A couple things first." The twin paused. He stopped in front of him and clasped his hands together, making eye contact with the triplet, who watched him awkwardly, scared of what he was about to say.

"I talked to Ozzal..."

The triplet sighed with disdain, scared of where this was going- but oddly relieved to hear the twin not call him "father".

"... And I let him know what was going on, meaning I got his blessing for you to stay up here. He's busy and doesn't really care."

"Did he mention anything about the others?"

"Yeah, everything's fine." The twin awkwardly ran his hand through his hair and sighed before continuing, as if he was frustrated with something he didn't mention. "He wanted to come for a quick visit today before going off conquering planets again."

All of them had a complicated relationship with their father- the triplets had a better relationship with him than the twins did, but Ozzal had grown a little distant from them recently, quite possibly disappointed with them. Ozzal's relationship with the twins had improved a little but at the same time become more diplomatic. He was more of a boss than a father to them.

"... So I decided today would be a good day to go off and overlook the crystal mines to get out of seeing him. Make sure everything there is running smoothly. There have been some complaints. I'm sure you understand."

The triplet nodded awkwardly, opening his mouth to respond, but the twin cut him off and continued talking.

"So... I'm going to need you to stay in uniform a while longer."

"I have to go out in this? Where people can see me?"

The twin smiled sheepishly. "Well, yes. It'll be fun." He paused, looking the triplet up and down sympathetically before continuing. "You look great. Powerful. A lot more daunting than I do." His smile faded. "Maybe it should have been you guys."

"What do you mean?" The triplet went over and took a seat on the sofa. The twin stayed where he was and looked down at his hands.

"Even together we always sort of had a hard time going out. We're supposed to overlook the mines and labs in this sector to make sure everything's running smoothly- and find out how to fix things if need be. Most people don't have permission to contact us unless it's through father or an emergency that would endanger us."

He paused, the triplet watching him uneasily. He assumed the twin liked going out and doing this sort of thing. Without his brother here it must be harder than normal to get out of the house.

"Then there's always someone out there who would jump at the chance to kill anyone in power. It's dangerous."

The triplet's heart sank. The house was heavily guarded- up on top of a tall hill overlooking the city. Heavily guarded, no one could get close to it. Leaving the safety of the house must have been hard for the twin. He didn't have adequate protection outside.

He forced the most confident smile he could muster, but it wasn't much. He was aware he generally wasn't good at comforting others. "Well, you're not doing it alone."

"I appreciate it. Thank you." The twin smiled to himself and walked over to the kitchen, opening a drawer and searching through it. "Truthfully, going out is usually dreadful. It can be fun, but it's stressful." He paused, tapping his fingers gently on the marble countertop.

"I'm very weak, physically. I didn't feel much more secure with my brother. We were both weak." He grabbed a rubber band out of the drawer, pulling his hair into a tight ponytail that hung above his neck.

"But I feel a little safer with you. I hope an opportunity arises for me to repay the favor to you. Thank you."

"No need." In all honesty, the triplet was only half paying attention to what he was saying now, getting distracted by watching him pull his hair up. The twin turned to make eye contact with him, frowning as if he was confused, possibly because of the simple response.

"Are... you letting your hair grow out?" The triplet asked- not really meaning to change the subject, but not putting thought into his response. He felt immediately embarrassed asking, but it had been asked. The twin smiled in amusement.

"I thought I'd give it a try. I don't think I could pull off having it as long as yours but I'd like to grow it out a little so I can tie it back and keep it off my neck."

"I see..."

"Well," The twin walked confidently to the front door, grabbing his cloak from off of a rack and pinning it around his shoulders. "Quicker we get there and make sure everything's in working order, quicker we can get back. Let's go."

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **The notes before this chapter are an optional read. You can scroll down to chapter 8 and skip the notes.**
> 
> **Crystal mining on twins’ homeworld - a concept  
> **  
>  Crystals are main source of currency.  
> Some are used only as currency, some have other purposes as well. There are 4 tiers of crystals.
> 
> **Organically mined crystals**  
>  These crystals are found organically in caves and mines and grow by themselves. Some of them have further chemical properties and can be ingested for pleasurable effects, but these are rare and can be replicated easily.  
> Workers earn a small wage by using machinery to mine crystals or doing it by hand. Though these crystals are the lowest tier of crystal, they are the most difficult to obtain and can grow in very dangerous places. Many miners lose their lives in the mines, unaware that this is what was supposed to happen (explained later).
> 
> **Genetically modified crystals**  
>  The most common type of crystal, these are slightly higher quality than organically mined but more aesthetically pleasing. These crystals are grown in labs and other controlled, secured environments (underground vaults, etc). Workers have control over the crystals’ colours and shape in most cases. They can be modified to have minor pleasurable effects when ingested or used to treat physical pain. For a price, these can be modified to fulfill tasks or serve a more permanent, practical purpose (emit light, store electricity, etc).  
>   
>  **Nutritionally subsidized crystals**  
>  Similar to tier 2, these crystals are grown in labs but in different ways.  
> These crystals are grown out of degrading organic matter– so the deceased bodies of mine workers will often be transported to these labs and be used to grow crystals. People will trade their deceased family for currency instead of having proper burials for them. The crystals feed off of whatever nutrients the flesh has left to offer.  
> These crystals can be manipulated to have not only pleasurable effects when ingested, but healing properties. These are used as oral medicine for many illnesses.  
> Usually the type of organism the crystal grows out of decides its colour and shape, but in rare cases the colour and shape are manipulated to hide what organism the crystal was grown out of.
> 
> **Nutritionally dependent crystals**  
>  These crystals only grow from living organisms. Usually injected as a liquid, these crystals grow and inhabit a living organism’s body, slowly feeding off of its life force. The longer it takes for the organism to die, the longer the crystals can feed and the better they will become.  
> The injection and starting process is immensely painful, but the crystals attack nerve endings and numb a lot of the pain. There have been very rare cases of the process turning pleasurable.  
> The process takes a very sporadic amount of time(can take hours, days or weeks in some cases. 3-4 days is average) and the body must have someone keeping watch over it at all times.  
> Once the carrier has deceased, the body must be burned. Once the nutrients have been completely stripped, the crystals stop growing and must be detached. The remains will emit a lethal, colorless gas. The gas can be harvested, but usually it’s deemed too risky to do so.  
> There have been some cases of these crystals forming on persons without an injection. Scientists are trying to work on a process to stop the process in the event of an accidental injection or it happening spontaneously.  
> Since there are no correctional facilities on their planet, usually this process replaces the death sentence. Depending on demand, persons in debt or convicted of petty crimes may be used to harbor these crystals.  
> These crystals are used almost entirely for recreational use, having extreme pleasurable effects when ingested- but everything comes with a price and even a small amount can be lethal. These crystals are heavily secured by the government and persons in power- and are often used to settle debts with neighbouring planets who lack the technology to make such things themselves.
> 
>  
> 
>  

The triplet walked behind his younger brother, taking careful note of how confidently he walked. His body language was that of someone powerful- he definitely looked the part as an overlord. The cloak he'd carefully thrown around his shoulders before they headed out added a lot to the look.

As they approached the mining base, the twin gestured for his elder brother to walk beside him, giving him a small frown before they continued. 

The caves appeared spacious and cavernous, but the deeper down you go, the more dangerous they get. They start off tapering slowly below ground level with large, open areas of room, but once you're outside of hearing distance from the surface, they get exponentially more dangerous- floors giving out, toxic gases expelled from gem and mineral deposits and dangerously sporadic and unnatural temperatures. The crystals mined from the caves were, oddly enough, the lowest tier of crystals, making them fairly worthless. Most of them were used as local currency. Some deeper in the mines would have medicinal properties.

Many, many lives are lost mining on a regular basis- but oddly enough, the bodies are always found relatively quickly after death as if someone were waiting for them to die before getting them support. As the caves get deeper, tighter and harder to navigate, it becomes harder to signal for help when it's needed. Flawed engineering and horrible working conditions meant mine workers didn't have the technology on them to call for help long distance. Dependable technology stayed within the circle of the wealthy. 

The mines made both of them uncomfortable in different ways. The twin knew full well of the dangers of them and turned up his nose at the working class; his elder brother on the other hand knew next to nothing of the mines and feared the unknown.

"We'd be the ones down there if we were born into less favorable circumstances." The twin paused to look towards one of the caves before placidly looking up at the triplet, who looked back at him uneasily. The triplet wouldn't admit it, but he was beginning to feel a little intimidated by the situation and uncertainty of what was going on. They continued walking- luckily the caves and mining bases were separate from the engineering labs that they were travelling to. They didn't need to get any closer to the caves than they already were.

The labs were large, white buildings with no windows. It looked like they were built into clusters, as if the buildings were perpetually being added on to. Smoke steadily billowed out of a huge metal chimney, but dissipated quickly after doing so. The buildings were surrounded by industrial electrical fencing, guards surrounding the perimeter. They stood unmoving even as the twin and triplet confidently walked up, only to turn their attention to a man making a brisk walk to the gate to meet the two.

"Glad you could make it." He bowed as he unlocked the gate. He was a man a head taller than the twin, similar in stature, adorning a long white lab coat. Large, thick rubber gloves were sitting on his shoulder. Upon unlocking the gate and swinging the door open, he paused and looked up at the triplet uneasily, who in turn swallowed nervously and looked away, obviously embarrassed and not sure what to say.

The twin impatiently looked the scientist in the eyes. 

"That's my brother. He's staying with me from now on. He's my equal."

"I see- I'm sorry, it's just not who I was expecting. I apologize if I seemed taken aback." The scientist moved out of the way and bowed again before guiding them into the building. It was strange for the triplet to hear the twin call him his equal. Even before the twins had been made overlords, he had an inferiority complex- the only thing that helped him with this is that the triplets outnumbered the twins.

The building was so brightly lit from the inside that it took their eyes a couple seconds to adjust to it. Littered between the regular lights in the ceiling were ultraviolet lights- the triplet wasn't sure of their purpose, but they looked out of place. 

Looking up at the lights may not have been the best idea he had. Wincing, he felt a little light headed as he looked back down to focus his attention on the discussion happening between the twin and the scientist.

"Everything is going smoothly." The scientist used exaggerated hand gestures as if to try and keep the twin's attention. There's been a spike in casualties in the mines, but that's good for business." He paused to gauge the twin's reaction- who in turn was paying attention to him, but looked to be growing tired.

The scientist guided them down a hallway into another room, where crystals were being grown in mass quantities in tubes, men carefully standing by and taking notes. In controlled environments, crystals were grown in high quantities and of higher quality than those harvested in mines. By all definitions they were better- they could be grown in specific colors and shapes to show their origins or effects. These crystals were commonly modified to have pleasurable effects when ingested, similar to common, low quality street drugs. They could also be engineered to serve practical purposes, such as storing and emitting light, media projecting or functioning as a mobile power supply. 

"This is your first time here, yes?" The scientist directed the question at the triplet without looking back at him, leading them through another hallway into a room almost identical to the previous one, with more men overlooking vats and tubes of bio-engineered crystal outcroppings. 

"Yes..."

"Well if you have any questions about how things work here, feel free to ask. There is a lot to talk about. It is the planet's economy, after all.

"I will. Thank you." 

The twin turned to the triplet and shot him a disapproving look as they walked. The scientist led them into a small, dimmer lit room that was entirely empty save for a couple chairs in the corner and a larger, intimidating door. The scientist gestured for them to sit before briskly walking through the large door.

"What was the look for?" The triplet spoke nervously and softly, turning his head to look over at his little brother, who sat uncomfortably in the chair. He was starting to look exhausted.

"You don't thank people here. We're authority figures. They thank us. We're the ones helping them."

The triplet sighed awkwardly. "Sorry."

"And you don't apologize to me."

They sat in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes.

"Are you feeling okay?" The triplet looked over at his younger brother again.

"Tired. They're just going to shake money out of me and send us on our way."

The triplet watched him for a few moments. The twin was starting to get a little impatient, rubbing his forehead and struggling to sit comfortably.

"Well," The triplet started after a few more moments. "I think you're doing a good job. I imagine this stuff is stressful."

The twin sat motionless before sighing and smiling to himself.

"Thank you."

After a few minutes, the large door slowly opened- the scientist from before nervously stepped back through into the room.

"Do... you want to come in? We can finish business and get the paperwork out of the way."

The twin looked up at his elder brother awkwardly, not knowing how he'd react to the rest of the labs, but at the same time not wanting to ask him to stay where he was. He let out a near silent sigh before getting up and heading to the door, the triplet following behind him.

The triplet was taken aback by the hallway they were being led down- glass walls lined either side of the wall. In small cubicles were dead bodies in various levels of decay, being monitored carefully by more scientists. A sickeningly sweet and distinct aroma wafted through the air. The sight was hard to look at, the triplet snapped his attention back into the hall as they walked through it.

The twin seemed to be unmoved by the bodies, still maintaining his confident posture as they were silently guided through a couple more identical hallways before turning off into a small office room, more dimly lit than the rest of what they've seen.

"So with the influx of deaths in the mines, we're running out of processing resources." The scientist took a seat on one side of the desk, collecting a couple papers that were scattered around and flipping through them to make sure they were in the correct order. The twin took a seat on the other side of the desk, his elder brother nervously doing the same.

"So you need more space?" The twin paused, pretending to carefully consider what was said. "I can arrange this."

"Thank you." The scientist slid the papers across the desk to the twin. "Needless to say we can pay you back tenfold once we put the new space to use."

While the twin flipped through the papers pretending to read the agreement he was about to sign, the scientists attention shifted over to the triplet and he stiffened up in his chair.

"Oh that's right, you haven't been here, have you?"

"No." The triplet swallowed nervously, not sure if he wanted to invite conversation, but at the same time wanting some sort of clarification on what was going on.

"I see. I guess what you've seen here might seem a little morbid but I assure you it's not as strange as it seems." He paused, briefly returning his attention to the twin, before continuing on.

"We use deceased bodies as hosts for crystal growing. Some types thrive off of sustenance, similar to living creatures."

"I see..."

The scientist continued. "So if there is a death in the mines, we make it work for us to help cut costs. If the family of the deceased is wealthy enough, they can buy back their loved ones in crystal form. It's like a type of cremation..."

The scientist looked at the twin, who nodded at him without looking up, still reading through papers. The triplet said nothing in response, appalled by what he was hearing.

"... So, these crystals in particular are extremely valuable and can be manipulated to have side effects when ingested or otherwise deposited in the body. A lot of them are processed into otherwise illegal substances. Some are made into medicine for hard to cure diseases."

"You make drugs out of them?" The triplet looked up at the scientist, briefly making eye contact with him until the scientist directed his attention back to the twin, clearly nervous about the question.

"Well, yes. Most of it is sold to the wealthy."

"This is a government facility and you're subsidizing drug creation?"

"Well... yes, but as I said, a lot of it falls into the hands of responsible and easy-to-track people. Some of it is shipped off as inter-planet currency as leverage for debts. When that happens, it's not our problem anymore. We make good money." 

The scientist paused for a response but was met with an awkward silence. The twin smiled smugly to himself as he picked up the pen, signing the bottoms of multiple pages of paperwork.

"It seems very strange until you get used to it, yes. But that's just how money works. That's how you stay wealthy."

The triplet leaned back in his chair and looked away, clearly communicating that he was done talking and that he was uncomfortable. The fact that he and his brothers had briefly been involved in drug usage made this even more surreal. He'd save any questions he had about the place for his little brother, who probably knew all there was to know about the place.

The twin slid the signed papers back across the desk and the scientist offered him a firm handshake. As he looked over and signed them himself, the twin reached over and rubbed his elder brother's back for a moment, letting his hand linger there for a second before folding his arms in front of him.

After some enthusiastic and rehearsed "thank yous" from the scientist, they were carefully escorted out the same way they came in.

"It's really not as bad as it seems." The twin insisted as they started their walk home. For someone allegedly unphased by the ordeal, he looked exhausted. 

"Well... maybe it is, and I've just gotten used to it. It's hard to tell. It's easiest not to worry about it. We have one of the galaxies' most powerful economies because of what we do." He paused. "Besides, they do worse there than recycle dead bodies."

"I don't want to know." The triplet replied, obviously irritated. Immediately after responding he became more self aware, careful of his tone. 

"Alright, sorry." The twin said sadly. His walk slowed and he took smaller steps as they went on in silence. Soon the triplet's interest in the labs started to wain as he watched his little brother uncertainly become more tired as they continued their trek home.

"Are you okay?"

"Tired."

"Want me to carry you?"

"Absolutely not." The twin looked back at him with a look of upset shock. "Not in public."

The triplet smiled to himself at the response. Soon they reached the cliff their home was on. He gently grabbed his little brother's arm and helped guide him up the marble stairs. The twin said nothing in protest, letting it happen without resisting.

The trek up the cliff was a workout. The twin looked dead on his feet when they stepped inside.

"Honestly, I'm not feeling too well." He turned to talk to the triplet, pushing some hair out of his face. Over the course of the day, most of the hair he put back in the rubber band had escaped, leaving him looking disheveled.

"Why don't you go get ready for bed early? I'll clean up around the house."

"No, I'll do it tomorrow. Come with me to bed. I don't want to be alone."

Knowing better than to argue, the triplet sighed silently to himself as they prepped for bed. Upon sitting down on the side of the bed, he realized he was exhausted as well. 

"I'm sorry I made you go with me." The twin sat on the other side of the bed, combing his hair. "I thought you might enjoy it."

"I didn't." The triplet paused. "But I have a feeling you didn't either."

"I'm desensitized." The twin put the comb down on the nightstand next to him. "It is strange, isn't it? It is. But I have to be a leader. If they suspect I'm too uncomfortable with what they get away with, they'll stop being upfront about what's happening there." 

He smiled, pausing a moment before continuing. "I was a wreck inside the first time I went there, both me and my brother. When we got home we both took turns holding each other's hair back as we vomited in the bathroom. We didn't take to the idea very well. Now I just don't care. It's not me or you down there, it's no one important. It doesn't matter."

"You mentioned they do worse things there." The triplet decided to press for information. The twin explaining what happens at the labs was a lot more comforting than hearing it from someone he didn't know or trust.

"Yeah..." The twin sighed. "Well, how do you think crime is dealt with? We have no prisons."

The triplet's heart sank.

"People who commit petty crimes are put into slave labor, of course. But those that aren't fit to be let back on the streets are confined in labs..."

He paused before continuing, giving the triplet an opportunity to cut him off if he didn't want to hear the rest, but he was met with silence. 

"... And similar to crystals being grown from decaying flesh, they can be injected into the bodies of the living. They're grown using the nourishment of living flesh. The process starts out painful, but the crystals release endorphins as they grow so that the host isn't aware that they're dying."

The triplet wasn't as taken aback as he thought he'd be- probably because he wasn't there to witness this happen in person.

"So these crystals in particular are the highest quality stuff. They're how we cure incurable diseases among the wealthy and how we end wars. They're on par with the most dangerous illegal substances in our galaxy."

"So just to make sure I'm following... these labs are run by the government?" The triplet asked in response.

"Yes."

"So the government is making and distributing what is essentially hard drugs."

"Yes- and as I said, we have one of the strongest economies in the entire galaxy." He paused. "Do you want me to hook you up?"

The triplet looked over at him, taken aback by the question and feeling defensive.

"No." He laid down as they continued chatting and winding down.

"I'm impressed with how well you handle responsibilities. If it were me I wouldn't have done it." The triplet could see the twin smile to himself, obviously pleased with the compliment. 

"You work hard. I really am impressed."

"Thank you." The twin replied, smiling. There was a pause as he stretched, still sitting on the side of the bed. "Do you mind if I sleep naked?"

"Kind of, yes." The triplet turned his head to look over at him awkwardly.

"But I'm uncomfortable. I had a long day."

"Just get some rest. You'll be fine tomorrow."

Scowling, the twin slowly reached over and turned off the bedside lamp and the room went completely dark. After a suspicious amount of shuffling around, he got into bed and covered himself with the blanket.

"Please tell me you've still got clothes on." The triplet said awkwardly, but received no response. He sighed and shifted around a little to get comfortable. Soon he relaxed enough for the day's events to be almost completely gone from his mind.

Out of curiosity, he very slowly reached out to touch his brother under the blanket. He felt cold skin. The twin must have taken his clothes off after he turned off the lamp. 

The triplet awkwardly withdrew his hand, but the twin didn't move or react, probably fast asleep after the day's events. After calming down a second time, the triplet eventually fell into a sound sleep as well.


	9. Chapter 9

The triplet awoke calmly- feeling suspiciously well rested but a little dreary, he stretched in the pitch black of the room. Half asleep, he gently reached over to see if the twin was still sleeping next to him or if he'd gotten up. Upon carefully touching his hair, he realized that one of the twin's legs was forced in between his own. It was warm and comfortable where he was. Considering the twin usually woke up early but was still sleeping soundly, he came to the conclusion that it must have been earlier than he thought.

He sighed contentedly and drifted back to sleep.

Some time later he'd woken calmly for the second time. Feeling the twin's leg still between his, he carefully got up to his feet and walked over to the door to open it. To his surprise, it was already starting to get dark out. While it would be normal for him to sleep this long, he couldn't say the same of his younger brother. Having a sharp involuntary inhale, he kneeled down next to his brother's side of the bed and shook him gently, and he stirred in response.

"Are you okay? we slept in really late."

"Yeah, let me sleep." The twin stretched and turned away from him.

"I know yesterday was tiring but we're talking like, fifteen hours asleep. You've got to get up."

"Shut up, you can't do math."

The triplet was taken aback by the comment- it seemed out of place and uncharacteristically rude for how things were progressing recently. He frowned to himself and tried not to let it get to him.

"Come on, get up. We can make a late breakfast." Getting to his feet, the triplet turned on the light on the nightstand, to which the twin groaned and hid his head under his pillow in response. The triplet watched him for a few moments hoping he'd get up on his own accord before realizing that would probably not be the case. His suspicions from last night were true from the looks of it- the twin had gotten completely undressed save for his underwear before he fell asleep. Flustered slightly by the sight, he tried pulling the covers off and prying the pillow away from his younger brother, who angrily kept a sturdy grip on it. The twin rolled onto his back, frowning before blindly reaching out and hitting the triplet's face with the back of his fist to get him to let go of the pillow.

The triplet let go of the pillow in shock, touching his bottom lip and realizing the twin had busted it open when he swung at him. Though it wasn't a particularly bad injury, he distinctly tasted blood, and he didn't like it. Gritting his teeth, he carelessly ripped the pillow away from the twin before grabbing him by the shoulder. The twin squinted and tried to open his eyes, struggling to force himself to wake up as his elder brother effortlessly picked him up by his upper arm, holding him up above the floor.

As his arm audibly cracked from being held up, the twin tried to stifle a yelp as the pain from his unquestionably disjointed shoulder resonated through his entire upper body. Without warning, the triplet let go of his younger brother and he abruptly fell to the floor. He instinctively curled up on his side, trying to cover his face with one hand and gripping his injured arm with the other. He sobbed quietly, but did not say a word.

The triplet put his foot on the twin's injured shoulder to gently force the twin onto his back, giving him a chance to comply willingly. The twin did so, but kept his head tilted away from his older brother, trying to hide his face in his hands as he sobbed more audibly. The triplet sighed impatiently and squatted next to the twin, grabbing him by the wrist and trying to gently take his hand away from his face. When the twin resisted, the triplet physically pried his hand away from his face.

The twin was clearly vulnerable and distraught- his nose was running, eyes red and cheeks wet from crying. He trembled slightly as he avoided eye contact, too scared of what might happen if he shut his eyes. The triplet gently tilted his younger brother's head towards him, prompting him to look up at him, still holding onto his other hand. The twin's breathing becoming more rapid in his fear as he briefly looked the triplet in the eyes for a moment before looking away.

Upon making eye contact, the situation quickly resonated with the triplet as he came to his senses and realized what he'd done. Without realizing it, he gently squeezed the twin's hand. The twin's eyes widened slightly as he looked back up at his elder brother with uncontainable panic.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." The twin squeezed the triplet's hand back, turning away from him quickly as he entered a coughing fit. The triplet let go of his hand, gently placing his hand on the twin's back for support and lifting him to sit upright as he coughed.

The triplet couldn't bring himself to look away, as much as it pained him to take in what he'd done. He rubbed the twin's back as the coughing slowed and replaced itself with audible crying.

"I'm sorry." The twin choked out another desperate apology, unable to look at his elder brother. Unsure of if he should give him space or comfort him, the triplet watched him carefully. While he wanted nothing more than to comfort him, it felt twisted and horrible to do so when he was the one that caused the anguish in the first place. He wasn't like this on purpose- while in the past both him and his brothers would have done things like this for fun, that was no longer the case. Every time he thought he couldn't hate himself any more, something else happened to prove him wrong. The more it became apparent to him that he should leave and go back to live with his brothers, the more he wanted to stay with the twin. It felt like he was two different, conflicting personalities trying to tear each other apart. What he wanted wasn't best for either of them, but it was too hard to leave.

Against his best judgment, he rubbed the twin's back to comfort him. Despite being the one that caused this, he wanted to focus on making sure the twin was alright rather than focusing on himself. As he continued, the twin carefully brought his legs up and hugged his knees, burying his head in his arms and tried to stifle more sobbing. The triplet swallowed nervously as he watched- the physical damage was one thing, but this must have been taking a toll on the twin psychologically.

"Come on, let's get you back into bed."

The twin shook his head slightly in response. His elder brother would try not to go against his wishes from now on unless his health was at stake. Defeated, the triplet sighed silently and continued trying to comfort his younger brother.

"Alright. Do you want to go out into the house? Stay here? Whatever you want."

After a few moments of silence, the twin raised his head up slowly, consciously avoiding eye contact. It pained the triplet to look at him- his face was red from crying and he was in obvious distress. It would have been different if the twin had gotten angry at the triplet's outbursts, but he just immediately took the blame and acted like he deserved what was happening to him. The twin reacting like that took the biggest toll on him.

Slowly, the twin reached out to hang onto the bed as he struggled to get to his feet, his elder brother keeping a hand on his back for support in case he fell. After a fair amount of effort, he found his balance and stood upright- brother still holding onto him just in case.

Together they walked out into the living room where the twin sat down on the sofa, sighed deeply and closed his eyes. The triplet sat down next to him without taking his eyes off of him- but stood back up after a few moments, walking back to the bedroom and coming back with a blanket. The twin was still undressed from last night, probably unwilling to admit he was cold. His elder brother gently put the blanket around him, and he smiled at the gesture, but did not look over at him.

The triplet sat back down next to him and watched him.

"How are you feeling?" He asked the twin cautiously.

"Numb." He smiled slightly as he answered, but it wasn't a happy smile. The triplet turned to face him, wanting to comfort him, but resisted the urge to touch him. Considering it was him that caused this, it wasn't right.

"Can we turn the television on? Just for background noise." The twin's voice was raspy as he talked.

"Of course."

After getting up to turn on the television, the triplet took a look back at the twin, watching him shifting around uncomfortably and wincing. Saddened, the triplet walked out to the kitchen to make a warm drink to help his younger brother's throat. Keeping a close eye on him to make sure he was alright, he looked over his shoulder at him every few moments. The twin tilted his head back and rested it on the top of the sofa, opening his eyes slightly and bringing his legs up to hold them underneath the blanket.

The triplet brought a steaming mug over to the twin, sitting back down next to him and holding it for for him to take. After a few moments, the twin uncertainly poked a hand out of the blanket to take the mug from his elder brother, then holding onto it tightly with both hands to enjoy the warmth.

"Thank you."

The triplet didn't respond, but forced a smile in response as the twin returned his attention to the television. When his elder brother did the same, the twin looked over at him, staring at his cut lip until the triplet sensed he was being stared at and looked over at him. After a few moments, the twin leaned forward and carefully placed the mug on the coffee table in front of them before having a small stretch, leaning back against the sofa and turning to face his elder brother. Cautiously, he reached out to touch the triplet's lip, purposely slow enough so that the triplet could stop him from doing it if he wanted to, but he didn't stop him. He ran his thumb over it and frowned, then retracted his hand and carefully got to his feet.

"What's up?" the triplet asked, but he received no response as his younger brother ambled into the kitchen, still holding the blanket around him. A few moments later he returned with a damp towel and sat back down where he was, leaning over and gently pressing it to the triplet's lip, letting go of the blanket which promptly fell down under his shoulders. Unsure how to react, the triplet tried putting the blanket back up around his brother's shoulders to no avail.

"It's fine, let it go and hold still."

Knowing better than to protest, the triplet obeyed and let the twin try to clean off his cut lip. The cut wasn't particularly bad and the pain did not bother him in the slightest, but he was scared of trying to stop the twin from doing something he wanted to do. He wasn't so much scared of the twin as he was scared of himself.

The moisture from the damp towel opened up the cut again and he could feel it start to bleed. The twin frowned at the sight, lowering the towel for a moment before reaching out and touching the injured lip with his other hand, then touching his finger to his tongue to taste the blood. The triplet grimaced and gently reached out to pull his younger brother's hand down away from his mouth.

"What are you doing? Don't do that."

The twin frowned in response, but said nothing and resumed holding the wet rag to his elder brother's swollen lip.

"I'm sorry I did this." The twin said, otherwise unmoving. The triplet tried looking him in the eyes but he did not look back, instead staring through him exhaustedly as if he wasn't really there. He wanted to comfort the twin, but he didn't want to reinforce that this was the twin's fault in any way. Instead he shook his head slightly and sighed, turning to face the television, hoping to drop the subject. The twin leaned forward to put the rag on the coffee table before pulling the blanket back up around himself, turning to face the triplet and resting his head on on the sofa back drearily.

"Sometimes I get sick when I'm away from my brother too long. Sometimes I get tired and irritable. It usually goes away quickly but I haven't really been away from him this long before." He paused and frowned.

"I don't want to get worse than I am. I already hurt you. I'm sorry."

The triplet turned his attention back to the twin.

"Big deal, you swung your arm when I tried to wake you up. It's nothing."

"Is that what happened? I don't really remember. I just know I did it."

The triplet watched him uneasily, not sure if the twin was being truthful about not remembering or if he was scared of what might happen if he recounted it accurately.

There were a few uncomfortable moments of silence.

"I think we should get your brother back."

The twin's eyes widened. "No, I don't want him. He left me. I hate him."

The triplet wasn't going to argue with him. Right now he just wanted to be a comfort to him until he was feeling better.

"What I was leading into is I'm sorry that I lash out. I don't know how to stop it because I don't even realize I'm doing it." He looked up at the triplet, making eye contact for a moment before he looked back down at the triplet's lip.

"I'm scared it'll cause you to leave if I continue."

The triplet smiled empathetically in response. If he left, it wouldn't be because of that.

"I don't want to be alone." The twin looked as if he was on the verge of crying.

"You don't have to be. I'm not going anywhere unless you tell me to." The triplet wasn't sure if he was being truthful or not- but it was what the twin needed to hear right now.

"I'm sorry I make you stay here with me."

The triplet tried to understand his younger brother's thought process, unsure of the toll being separated from his brother was really having on him. Him and his two brothers weren't like this, they could spend weeks apart on good terms and be fine after. The twin's situation wasn't something he fully understood, despite his best efforts to.

"I'll be fine by tomorrow."

"How do you know?"

"Trust me."

The triplet forced a smile, and against his better judgment he reached out and touched his younger brother's hair. He pressed his fingers against the twin's forehead- he was burning up.

"I think we should get you medical attention."

The twin smiled weakly in response. "Why? It's okay. It's not worth the effort."

"Why isn't it? You're not doing too well and I don't know how to help."

"I don't want anyone to think you did something to me."

There was an uncomfortable pause.

"But I did."

The twin shook his head.

"I don't want Ozzal to find out I'm like this."

The triplet opened his mouth to say something, but the twin continued before he had a chance.

"I don't want you taken away from me."

He was taken aback a little by what the twin was saying- it sounded like he had thought this through, as if it had been a persistent fear of his.

"I won't want to be alone."

The twin's brother leaving must have really taken a toll on him mentally.

"Alright, well I won't make you do anything you don't want to do." The triplet didn't know what was best for his younger brother- but knew what was best for him probably didn't coincide with what the twin wanted. Until he got himself straightened out, he'd just try to give the twin what he wanted.

The twin carefully laid down on his side, resting his head in the triplet's lap. He sighed audibly, to which the triplet instinctively touched his hair, running his fingers through it gently.

Almost everything about the twin made his elder brother feel inferior and self conscious. There was only so far that brute strength could get you without making you feel even worse about yourself. The triplet felt like a failed experiment that Ozzal had made. Ozzal had taken note of the triplets' shortcomings and had made the twins in hopes they'd be better versions of them. The twin was smarter, quicker and more compassionate than he was. The twins were able to form a bond that the triplets would have found laughable. Only after isolating himself from his brothers did the triplet gain any sense of compassion- and what little compassion he did have was caused by abuse he had done.

He truly hated himself.

The more time the triplet spent with his younger brother, the worse he felt about himself- but the worse he felt, the more he cared about his brother's well being. It was a situation he didn't understand, but tried to accept.

The twin gently rolled onto his back and looked up at his elder brother with a smile.

"I noticed something you stopped doing."

"What's that?" The triplet replied, scared of the answer.

"You stopped wearing that silly face makeup."

The triplet looked away awkwardly, embarrassed about the subject. His embarrassment brought the twin joy and he covered his mouth to hide a grin.

"I guess I did." He hoped that would be the end of the conversation. Talking about or dwelling on his own appearance was embarrassing for him.

"No, it looked okay. Why did you stop though?"

The triplet sighed involuntarily. "I guess it was sort of a unifying thing between me and my brothers. Since I'm separated from them now, I just don't feel the need to do it."

"You're growing your hair out too." The twin reached up and ran his fingers through his elder brother's hair a few times before smiling slyly at him, keen on the fact that he was embarrassed.

"Yeah, I guess I am."

"It looks nice. I like it."

Embarrassed and not wanting to dwell on the subject, the triplet couldn't bring himself to respond. The twin continued to smile, enjoying exploiting one of his elder brother's weaknesses.

"You still wear the... what is that, foundation?"

"I guess." The triplet really hoped his younger brother would drop the subject.

"Why?"

He sighed. "I guess it's sort of a middle ground between being by myself and still being connected to my brothers."

While it was true, he didn't want to admit that he mostly just wanted to cover up as much of his skin as he could. While the twins had fair and nice skin, the triplets were not so lucky.

"Ozzal tried to make my brother and I wear these absurd face markings like he has. We did it once to please him, then never again. We looked ridiculous."

"I'm sure it looked fine." The triplet looked back down at him, eager to change the topic to something other than himself. They exchanged a glance and smiled.

"Do you miss them? I mean- your brothers?"

The triplet thought for a moment before answering. "Not really, no. I mean, we're on good terms. It doesn't really matter if I miss them or not. We always spend time away from each other.

The twin's smile faded. Fearing he said something he shouldn't have, the triplet stopped talking.

After pausing and looking up at him, the twin picked his head up from the triplet's lap and sat upright, folding his legs and facing his elder brother. He frowned, extending a hand to touch the triplet's bottom lip.

"The swelling's gone down. It looks okay now."

"Thank you."

The twin smiled for a moment, but it faded as they briefly made eye contact.

"I'm sorry." The twin gently stroked his elder brother's chin with his thumb. The triplet frowned in response, not knowing specifically what he was apologizing for.

"Don't be, everything's fine."

"I'm a spoiled brat."

"You're alright."

"No, look what I did." The twin stared sadly at the triplet's lip, leaning closer to him.

"Yeah, and look what I did in return."

The twin stared at him and frowned, as if expecting him to elaborate.

"What did you do?"

When their eyes met, the triplet realized the twin wasn't joking and either didn't remember what happened or truly believed the consequences were his fault.

Unsure of how to answer, the triplet stared at him uneasily and shook his head.

The twin's eyes nervously darted around the triplet's facial features as he slowly lowered his hand down to touch the triplet's neck- only then did the triplet realize how cold his hands were. The triplet watched him with uncertainty, unsure what he should do in response. As much as he wanted to, it wasn't right for him to comfort his younger brother when he was the one who hurt him in the first place.

Eventually the twin put his arms around the triplet's shoulders and embraced him, hiding his face in the triplet's neck.

The triplet, unsure of what to do, let his hands hover over his younger brother's back for a moment before he decided to withdraw them and not reciprocate the gesture. He couldn't bring himself to do so, but he couldn't bring himself to push the twin away either.

"I hate myself." the triplet heard himself say quietly out loud, but he was met with silence.

He had to find a way to control his outbursts before they got worse. As time went on he found himself caring more genuinely for his younger brother- and that made the outbursts he had take more of an emotional toll on him every time. If he couldn't find a way to fix things, he'd have to force himself to leave for the twin's safety.


	10. Chapter 10

The twin awoke gently as his elder brother got up from bed suspiciously early. When he opened the door out into the house the twin could see it was still dark out.

After the triplet left the room, the twin waited for his return under the assumption he'd gotten up to use the bathroom or to get a drink. Some time passed and he didn't come back. It was unlike him to wake up so early- or perhaps it was later than the twin had thought.

Groggy, the twin got up to his feet.

Entering the house, the triplet was nowhere to be seen. The twin poked his head in the bathroom- it was empty. There was a note left on the kitchen counter:

Be back soon

The twin hastily looked out the windows before going to the front door and looking out, hoping he'd catch his elder brother before he'd gotten too far- but he was nowhere. Sighing, the twin looked back at the nearly illegible note his elder brother had left him. His handwriting was not easily deciphered.

The twin tried to distract himself for a while by making coffee- then when some time had passed and the sun had started to rise, he decided to call his elder brother and see if he'd spill where he was at. Upon dialing the number, he heard ringing coming from the bathroom. He ran his hand down his face upon realizing the triplet had left his phone at home.

After retrieving it from the bathroom where it was left, curiosity got the best of him and he looked through it for anything interesting- but there was nothing of particular interest. There were some pictures he'd taken of their conquest vessels, videos of the triplets playing pranks on each other and some missed calls from Ozzal. Almost everything in the phone was fairly old and it seemed he didn't use his phone much recently. There was a recent outgoing call to the laboratories they'd been to the other day- so that must be where the triplet was visiting. While he was relieved to know where to find him if there was an emergency, he couldn't help but wonder why the triplet would have been there.

The twin dramatically collapsed on the sofa and turned on the television to try and distract himself to little avail. After getting up several times to look out the window, it was clear to him he wouldn't be able to relax and so he tried to busy himself instead. He cleaned around the kitchen area- but found it difficult when there wasn't an apparent mess. He wasn't one for maintaining spaces unless there was a visible reason. Still, he tried his best.

He cleaned all of the windows before moving onto the floors. Stopping to look at what he'd gotten done, he grew irritated that there was no visible difference from how they were before.

He decided a bath might calm his nerves and help him relax. After sinking into the bath tub to soak, he started to calm down.

He rummaged through the closet when he was done for something comfortable to wear- deciding on one of his elder brother's oversized t-shirts. After drying his hair and getting dressed, he fell face down on the bed and sighed. He reached over and grabbed his elder brother's pillow, holding it to his face and inhaling deeply- it smelled like him, it was comforting.

Bringing the pillow out to the living room, the twin sat back down and tried to focus on watching television, hugging the pillow and glancing out the window every so often.

The sun had start to set and the twin started to get a little nervous, getting to his feet every few minutes to look out the front door.

After what felt like an eternity, he saw his elder brother making his way up the steps. Trying to mask his relief and excitement, he hastily sat back down on the sofa with the pillow, pretending to busy himself watching something.

When the triplet came through the front door, the twin sat upright and smiled as they made eye contact, but his smile faded quickly as something around the triplet's neck caught his attention.

The twin slowly got to his feet and gestured to what seemed to be a black collar around the triplet's neck.

"What is that?"

A dark metal cuff was fit snugly around the triplet's neck with a small green flashing light on the side. The triplet smiled drearily- he looked comfortably tired, but not exhausted. Slowly, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small remote attached to a metal chain, handing it to the twin.

The twin looked down at it awkwardly- it was a small plastic box with a couple indented buttons on the front of it. He looked up at the triplet and waited for an explanation, otherwise unmoving.

"Press it."

Without realizing it, the twin found himself shaking his head slightly in protest.

"No."

"Come on," the triplet smiled sympathetically. "All it is is a collar- it sends out a small, harmless shock when you press the button."

The twin was visibly upset- his eyes watered and his arms shook slightly.

"Why?"

"Because it's necessary." The triplet said sternly. The twin pointed to the triplet's neck best he could, but his hand was shaking.

"Take it off."

The triplet sighed, shaking his head in response.

"Do it."

"I can't." The triplet spoke softly, aware the twin was upset. He didn't want to upset him further.

"Who did this to you?" The twin's voice was unsteady as he talked.

"Me."

"Who put it on you?"

The triplet didn't answer him, but smiled defeatedly and sighed. The twin let go of the remote in an act of defiance, allowing it to fall to the floor before walking over to his elder brother and prompting him to bend down so he could look at the collar.

The triplet obliged, bending down and folding his arms. The twin poked around the collar, looking for a latch or keyhole- but couldn't find anything. He tried to rotate it around, but it was fit very snugly around the triplet's neck. A green light intermittently flashed to show the collar was activated.

The twin became a little more aggressive, trying to pull it off with force to no avail.

"Come on, be gentle."

"How do I get it off?" The twin asked, voice still shaking.

"You don't."

Before the twin could resume yanking at the collar, the triplet stood back upright, sighing and patting his younger brother on the head gently.

"Don't touch me." The twin recoiled slightly before backing away from him.

"Sorry."

After angrily staring him down, the twin picked the remote up off the floor, walked it over to the kitchen and dumped it in the trash bin.

"Come on now, one of is us going to have to fish that out."

"Why are you doing this?" The twin spoke up and his face turned red. He was met with silence.

"I don't like it." He continued, growing more angry as the moments passed. "A shock collar? You're not a fucking animal. You're my brother."

He paused for a response but was met with silence. The triplet didn't know what to say when the twin got like this- it would be easier to talk about if they were both calm, but the twin was not.

"Get it removed."

The twin stared at the triplet, waiting for a response. The triplet rubbed his eyes and defeatedly shook his head.

"I demand it. Take it off, get whoever put it on you to take it off."

The triplet sat down on the sofa, stretching his arms before holding his face in his hands. He didn't have the energy or will to fight his younger brother on this.

"If you're trying to piss me off into testing it, it's not going to work. It's not happening."

"I'm not." The triplet finally responded. "I'm just tired."

Facing away from his elder brother, the twin purposely knocked a mug off the counter onto the floor, shattering it into pieces.

"Come on, don't be like that." The triplet frowned as he watched, but the twin did not turn around to face him.

"I'll clean it up in the morning." The triplet continued, but he was met with silence.

"Is it alright if I crash for the night? I can stay up with you if you want, but I have a feeling you don't want the company."

"You can do whatever you want to fucking do," The twin's voice grew more angry as he spoke and he turned around to face his elder brother. "Because you're not a fucking animal."

Sighing, the triplet disappeared into the hallway.

"Good night."

The twin stood in the kitchen motionless for a few minutes as he calmed down. After he cleaned up the floor, he retrieved the remote from the trash, staring at it with hatred before putting it down on the counter, placing an open magazine over it so he wouldn't have to look at it.

After splashing cold water in his face, he laid down on the sofa. He'd forgotten to bring the triplet's pillow back into the bedroom. Even if he was angry at him, the scent still comforted him and he slowly started to calm down as he curled up and closed his eyes.

After a few minutes, the triplet quietly came back out, placing a blanket over the twin gently before disappearing into the bedroom again. After waiting a few minutes, the twin got up to his feet, taking the pillow and blanket and went to the bedroom.

He laid down next to the triplet quietly, unsure if he'd fallen back asleep in such a small period of time.

"Still mad?" The triplet asked quietly.

"Yes."

"Want me to leave? It's your bedroom."

"Don't."

The twin turned to face him, curled up on his side. The green light on the collar blinked every few seconds.

"Why did you do it?" The twin asked calmly.

"To protect you."

The twin paused for a few moments before answering. "You're punishing yourself because I'm a spoiled brat who acts like my actions have no consequences?"

The triplet sighed. "Can we talk about this in the morning- or better yet, not at all?"

The twin turned away from him and didn't respond.

"There were some complications fitting and testing the collar."

The twin turned to lay on his stomach, listening to the triplet as he continued.

"What happened?"

"I guess I freaked out and threw someone across the room."

"Cool."

"Not cool, what if I did that to you? Hell, I've done worse than that. That's the point of this all. I know you understand. You might not want to admit it, but you understand." He paused before continuing.

"So anyway, they wound up having to tranquilize me while they worked on it. I'm fine, but I'm really low on energy." He paused again to give the twin a chance to respond, but he did not.

"But really, nothing's going to change. This just gives you a chance to defend yourself if I do something stupid. That's all."

"I don't like it." The twin replied.

"I guess I can always leave if I get bad."

"No." the twin replied hastily, fear in his voice.

The triplet sighed, pulling the twin closer to his side and keeping his arm over him.

The twin put his hand over his elder brother's arm, squeezing it gently before relaxing his grip as he calmed down. He felt warm and safe- he didn't understand why someone who made him feel this way would act like he's dangerous.

He struggled to stay awake, wanting to enjoy the comfort and safety that his elder brother made him feel, but eventually he fell peacefully asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the point at which im glad no one is reading this

Sitting together at the kitchen counter, they enjoyed a late dinner together. Every so often the twin would accidentally catch a glimpse of his elder brother's collar and have to distract himself so that he didn't seem angry. He figured if he stayed on his best behaviour, the collar would prove to be unnecessary and the triplet would agree to take it off.

The twin continued to be offended by it- it was ugly, built for an animal- but they had had that argument a few times to no prevail. It led nowhere and had ended with the twin working himself up to exhaustion. It made them both ugly.

Suddenly and without warning, the front door swung open and the other twin stepped indoors confidently, taking off his shoes to leave by the door. The duo stared at him silently for a moment before the twin spoke up.

"What are you doing? This isn't your home. Go."

Pretending not to hear him, the twin that had entered the house walked towards them into the kitchen, checking out what they had made for dinner.

"You still cook?" He said as he took a plate down and helped himself to what was left on the stove.

"That's not yours." The twin watched his brother with frustration and confusion as he got up from his chair, fists clenched. The triplet shot him a disapproving look, gently grabbing onto his wrist to stop him from confronting their visitor.

"Come on, be nice." The triplet turned to the stove where the visiting twin was stood smirking to himself. "You're welcome to stay for dinner."

The visiting twin took his plate of food and sat on the other side of the counter across from the confused pair. The twin held his breath in an effort to calm himself down before sitting back down next to the triplet, consciously watching his twin brother eat in an effort to make him feel awkward, but it didn't work.

"Let's invite father over as well while we're at it. Let's invite everyone." The visiting twin stifled a chuckle at his brother's irritation as he continued to eat without looking up at either of them. The triplet sighed silently- then reached over to place a hand on his younger brother's leg from underneath the table. In an attempt to calm him down, he rubbed it gently, out of sight of the visitor.

Flustered, the twin froze and said nothing. After a few moment had passed, the visiting twin looked up at him.

"So why are you here?" The twin finally mustered up some words for his visiting brother. The triplet continued to secretly try and calm him down.

The visiting twin sternly placed his fork down on the table, sighed, and looked up at the triplet expectantly. Nervously unaware of if the visitor had seen what he was doing, he took back his hand, folding them both under his chin in an effort to look as attentive as possible. Maybe if he showed he cared, the twin would follow suit and not cause a fuss over the other twin being here.

"It's your brothers." He spoke as he shot a disapproving look at the triplet. "They've been fighting and setting each other off, moreso than usual. I've adapted to the normal amount but it's just getting worse these past few days."

The triplet inhaled sharply before looking out the window at the sky for a second as if he'd lost track of time.

"I'm fragile." The visiting twin continued to explain the situation. "Like I can't handle that kind of intensity."

"Yeah, they get like that." The triplet replied awkwardly. The visiting twin caught on to the triplet's discomfort on the subject and smiled.

" _They_... so I suppose you're more well behaved than your brothers? Are you reformed?"

"Quit it." The twin was growing frustrated with his brother again.

"Is that what the collar is for? Is that some sort of monitoring device?" The visiting twin picked up his fork and gestured to the collar, smirking. The original twin's irritation turned into embarrassment at the subject and he looked to the triplet in hopes of him stepping in to say something.

"So are you well behaved?" The visiting twin folded his hands below his chin.

"I have some issues I need to work out." The triplet tried to diffuse the situation by offering a simple but honest answer, unwilling to let himself get worked up.

"Like what?"

"Quit it." The twin clenched his fists as he watched his brother take pleasure in the triplet's discomfort.

"Is it a camera?"

"No."

"Some sort of mind control thing?"

"Have you gotten stupider hanging around with the other triplets?" The twin tried to maintain his temper, but it became increasingly difficult. "We don't live in a sci-fi novel."

Getting up slowly and cautiously to demonstrate he was calm, the triplet sighed and walked to the bathroom without saying a word. He was a little hurt at the comment about his brothers, but he needed desperately to splash some cold water in his face and clear his mind for a few minutes- and to an extent he took pleasure in knowing the twins were probably sat in awkward silence ignoring each other's existence in his absence.

Without warning, the bathroom door opened and the twin joined him, leaving the visitor by his lonesome out in the kitchen. The triplet looked at him with mild surprise.

"Holy shit, knock. Haven't you heard of knocking? It's a bathroom. I could have been naked."

"Lucky me." The twin replied cheerfully, taking pleasure in the triplet's embarrassment. Unable to offer a rebuttal, the triplet dragged his hands down his face and sighed. The twin's smile was quickly replaced with a frown as they made eye contact.

"Make him leave." The twin talked quietly, turning the sink faucet up higher to help muffle the noise of the conversation. "He's annoying me. I want to punch him in his stupid face."

"You don't mean that, he's alright." The triplet splashed cold water in his face, grabbing a hand towel off the rack and patting his face dry after.

"Yes I do. Make him leave."

The triplet paused for a moment, discontentedly observing his own face in the mirror. "I think it's best he stays here for a few days."

"Why?"

"If the other guys are acting... intense... enough for him to come here, then he should stay. I mean if he's feeling threatened enough where he'd come here, then he should stay where he feels safe."

"He's just being a baby. He's here specifically to piss me off. He's probably making this all up."

The triplet sighed. "Just let him stay for a while. I believe him about the others."

"Well then ask him what they're fighting about and fix it."

"I can't."

The twin let out a half hearted chuckle. "Yes you can, I'm not keeping you here against your will. You can go get this sorted out. You can do whatever you want."

"I mean I can't... fix what they're fighting about."

The twin stared at him expectantly. "Why not? Does this mean you know what's going on? I hope you don't think I'm against you talking to them- they are your brothers after all." He paused. "Is this about the comment I made before about hanging out with them making my brother more stupid? I didn't-"

"No, no." The triplet cut him off before sitting down on the edge of the bath tub and rubbing his head, frustrated by the conversation.

"So why can't you fix it? Are you hiding something?"

"No." The triplet sighed again.

"There's obviously something going on that everyone knows about besides me then." The twin tried to avoid raising his voice as he grew more irritated. "If this is a really elaborate trick to get me pissed off enough to test that collar, you can forget it."

"Oh my god. No, look." The triplet was slowly losing his temper- and aware of it, he paused to help regain his composure before continuing talking.

"It's got something to do with planetary cycles. Like we get like that sometimes. It's some sort of hormone imbalance. I don't know."

The twin's irritation quickly turned to curious amusement as he watched the triplet, who was consciously avoiding eye contact, immensely uncomfortable with the turn the conversation was taking.

"Want to explain further?" The twin asked.

"Not much else to explain. Every few months we get like this for a few days. We get a lot of pent up frustration we don't know how to deal with."

"Don't know how to deal with or don't want to deal with it?" The twin smiled, taking enjoyment in the turn the conversation had taken.

"I... wait, why am I even telling you this? I'm done."

"So that's definitely what's going on then? What about you? You seem fine."

"I don't know, can we move on?"

The twin slowly put his hand over his mouth as if he'd just remembered something important.

"That's why you were-"

"Oh my god, shut up." The triplet cut him off, holding his head in his hands, thoroughly embarrassed. "Just let him stay for a few days."

"Fine, you owe me big time." The twin responded after a couple moments of contemplation.

"Whatever." The triplet got up to his feet.

"And if anything bad happens I'm holding you personally accountable."

"Whatever. Okay. Great."

"Do you think my brother knows what's going on?"

"Not if it doesn't happen to you two, no."

"Do you think you should call your brothers and see what's going on? Just to make sure everything's alright."

"I'll call them tomorrow. I'm done with this now." The triplet opened the door, walking back out to the kitchen with the twin behind him. The visiting twin hadn't moved from where he was sitting, slowly picking away at his dinner, smiling smugly when the duo returned.

"What were you doing in there?"

"Discussing who gets to beat the shit out of you if you keep acting like a little bitch." The twin said- the triplet frowned and gently hit his shoulder in disapproval. The visiting twin smiled in satisfaction at the remark.

"You can stay as long as you like." The triplet decided it was best to take control of the conversation and steer it away from conflict.

"Thank you. Where can I sleep? I assume you're using the sofa and I don't think my darling brother is willing to share the bed with me."

"I sleep in the bedroom with him. You can have the sofa." The triplet replied awkwardly.

"Oh, isn't that sweet?"

The twin put his head down on the table and covered it with his arms at his brother's remarks, trying his best to tune him out.

  
At the visiting twin's request, they decided to watch a movie before bed in the living room. The triplet sat between the twins on the sofa- the visiting twin paying close attention to the movie while the other couldn't wait for it to be over. He would peer over at his brother, looking like he was about to be sick, but stopped when he went ignored.

"Can we pause? I need to use the bathroom." The visiting twin asked. The triplet obliged, pausing the movie as the twin got up and headed to the bathroom.

"I hate you. I really do." The twin said quietly to his elder brother, who chuckled in response.

"What? Why are you laughing?" The twin continued.

"You're handling it well. I'm proud of you."

"Don't patronize me."

"I'm not." The triplet paused. "I don't think the guys would have really hurt him, but I feel better about him being here."

"Good for you."

The triplet chuckled again at the short response. Despite the twin being irritated, things were going okay. Even if the twin was mad, he was functioning well under pressure and him being upset like this was more favorable than him being scared. It was a distraction that hopefully would make him forget about the triplet's collar for a while.

"I hope he falls in the toilet and dies."

The triplet let out a stifled laugh, gently punching the twin's shoulder.

The other twin returned from the bathroom and they resumed the rest of the movie. Once it was over, the twin left to go make the bed- the triplet doing to tidy up the kitchen.

"The guys didn't actually hurt you, did they?" The triplet asked the visiting twin from across the room before returning to sit on the chair next to the sofa.

"No, if they had I would have gone straight to father. No one lays a hand on me without my consent."

"So you guys get along alright?"

"Yeah, but they kind of live like animals. No offense."

"None taken." The comment stung a little, but the conversation wasn't about him and he wasn't about to defend himself.

"But anyway, why aren't you acting up? I assume all three of you are kind of on the same wavelength."

The triplet shrugged. "Different environment, I guess."

The other twin emerged from the bedroom, grabbing a glass of water from the kitchen as the triplet got up from his seat.

"Well, you know where everything is if you need anything."

"Well yeah, it's my house".

The triplet smiled patiently, then disappeared into the hallway to the bedroom, the other twin following behind him.

  
The twin dramatically collapsed on the bed as the triplet sat down on his side of it, running his hands down his face, glad the night was just about over. The twin turned his head to face away from the triplet.

"I hate you."

"No you don't." The triplet chuckled quietly.

"Yes I do."

The triplet laid down, turning the light off and engulfing the room in darkness.

"I know you're not actually mad."

"I'm furious."

"Alright, well good night."

"Maybe I'll test that collar."

"Go on, then."

After doing some suspicious shuffling around, the twin leaned over and bit the triplet's shoulder. He jumped in surprise- it didn't hurt but he wasn't expecting it and he caught him off guard. The twin smiled in satisfaction at the response, but his smile was lost to the darkness of the room.

"You better hope I don't try to get even."

"I'd like to see you try."

Holding onto his arm securely, the twin fell asleep without another word.


	12. Chapter 12

A few days passed- the situation mellowed out a little, the twin no longer angry at the triplet for letting the other twin stay with them. The twins continued to get along poorly, but not poorly enough for the triplet to be too concerned. Being reunited with his brother made the twin function better than he normally did, much to the relief of the triplet.

The twin had previously explained to him that him being away from his brother caused adverse health effects for both of them, so the triplet wondered if that was half the reason the other twin had decided to visit. They must have missed each other, even if they didn't admit it- then again, the triplet never really felt the need to stay with his brothers. They got along well enough despite being rough with each other, but they were largely independent from each other. That's how it always was.

Despite functioning better, the twin seemed exhausted the past few days. While the visiting twin was in the bathroom, he and the triplet prepared dinner and tea in the kitchen. Leisurely, he poured hot water into a few mugs on the table. The triplet watched him curiously, unsure if asking him if he was alright would instigate an argument about the other twin staying here. The twin frowned as he felt his elder brother watch him- he didn't like being watched.

"What?" The twin paused and looked up at his elder brother.

"I'm just concerned. You seem a little out of it."

"I'm fine."

The triplet decided if there was something else going on, nothing could be done if the twin didn't want to talk about it. The conversation was over.

The twin sighed, setting the kettle down on the counter before accidentally knocking one of the mugs of scalding hot tea over, spilling the liquid onto the triplet's side. The mug rolled off of the table onto the floor with a loud, grating crash, but didn't shatter. The triplet instinctively grabbed his side where the water had burnt him- the pain was not very bad, and he had a very high pain tolerance, but he still did not take kindly to the burn.

The twin watched for a moment in shock at his own clumsiness before turning around to grab a hand towel out of the cabinet. Before he could find one, he felt a firm, hostile grip on his shoulders, which was quickly followed by him being carelessly thrown against the wall. Before he had a chance to protest or register what had happened, he was on the floor, wincing in the moderate pain his back was causing him.

The triplet defended himself impulsively, unable to fully register the situation- only aware that the twin had hurt him.

The sound of the bathroom door opening brought the triplet to his senses, and he turned around to see the other twin walk out to the living room cautiously with mild surprise.

"Do you have to be so loud? I thought something horrible had happened."

The triplet quickly turned around to face the twin in horror at what he'd done before extending a hand to help him up. The twin frowned, denying the help and carefully getting to his feet by himself. The triplet watched him carefully, horrified at what he may have done if they other twin hadn't distracted him.

"Can't defend yourself? Are you really my brother?" The visiting twin joked, clearly unphased by the ordeal he'd walked in on.

"Defend myself against what? I'm fine." He replied, holding onto the kitchen counter for support and standing as calmly and confidently as he could. The triplet watched him carefully, not sure what to say or do since his help had been denied. He saw pain and exhaustion in the twin's face and he felt wholly responsible for it now.

"I'll I'm saying is I don't have this problem with the others." The visiting twin said as he sat down on the sofa and turned on the television. The other twin slowly walked to the living room as if to approach his brother before pausing, staring him in the eye for a moment before calmly walking out the front door, seeming to have second thoughts about engaging in an argument with him. The visiting twin and triplet exchanged a quick glance before the twin's attention returned to the television.

"An interesting dynamic you two have." He sounded a little curious, but otherwise unphased with no further interest in making sure his brother was okay.

The triplet felt his heart sink several times as he imagined what he might have done if he wouldn't have been distracted from doing so. After holding his breath for a few moments to calm down, he briskly made his way out the front door to check on the twin.

The twin sat on the top step, hugging his knees and looking down at the city. Even at such a late hour, it was lit up and busy. With the small amount of sunlight they got daily, the city opted to function nearly around the clock.

The triplet watched him sadly for a few moments before approaching him and sitting down next to him on the step. He leaned forward and tried to make eye contact, but the twin didn't move, still set on staring down into the city.

"Are you okay?" The triplet's voice cracked as he asked. He wasn't sure how to approach the situation, being wholly aware that he'd caused it. The twin didn't answer him- or do anything to acknowledge his existence at all.

The triplet stifled a sigh as he gently placed his hand on the twin's upper back.

"Please don't touch me."

He swallowed nervously as he took his hand away and watched the twin's face for any change of expression.

"I'm sorry." His voice cracked again as he spoke and he was met with silence.

"I'm sorry." The triplet repeated himself as he quickly became more upset with himself. "I'm going to fix this. I can't keep doing this."

He leaned forward and held his head in his hands. "I don't mean to do this. I don't even remember it happening. It's like I can't control myself." He paused for a moment, but knew he wouldn't receive a response.

"I can't control myself." He looked at his own hands in mild horror.

"It's alright." The twin finally responded, but he didn't look over as he talked.

"I want to be alone for a while though."

The triplet looked over at him, hoping he'd look back, or smile, or do anything to reassure him he was really okay. There was little sincerity in his voice when he said things were alright.

The triplet reached out and let his hand hover above the twin's back for a moment before he withdrew it. He wanted nothing more than to comfort his younger brother and it took every drop of self control he had to fight the urge to do so. He wanted to hug him, he wanted to embrace him and tell him everything would be okay- but he couldn't, because he was the sole cause of the problems. He wanted to believe this would be the last time something like this happened, but he knew that wouldn't be the case.

It would be horribly wrong for him to continue trying to comfort the twin every time he did this, and he became increasingly aware of it- but as he became more aware of it, the urge to comfort him grew stronger. He wanted everything to be okay.

Without another word, the triplet slowly got up to his feet, turned around and walked back inside.

 

The visiting twin watched him curiously as he walked through the living room into the kitchen.

"Is he mad?" The twin asked awkwardly.

"Yeah, I... I guess so." The triplet responded as calmly as he could, unsure how specific of an answer he should give.

"I think I should crash out here on the floor tonight. Is that alright?" He asked the visiting twin as he cleaned up the water from earlier off the kitchen floor.

"Suit yourself."

Around half an hour passed- the triplet uncomfortably fidgeting in the kitchen, not sure what to do with himself. Eventually the front door opened and the twin came back inside, actively avoiding eye contact with both of them as he calmly shut himself in the bathroom.

After a minute or so, the triplet could hear what sounded like a coughing fit coming from the bathroom- he and the visiting twin exchanged a quick, concerned glance as the noise quickly stopped. After a few minutes, the twin exited the bathroom and grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen while still avoiding making eye contact with either of them.

"I'm going to bed."

The twin quietly disappeared down the hallway into the bedroom. The triplet stood for a few minutes in the kitchen, unsure if he'd come back out, but he didn't.

 

"How are the guys treating you?"

The triplet tried to lead in to conversation as him and the visiting twin got ready to go to sleep.

"Well enough. Curiously, they've never laid a land on me. It makes me wonder what your deal is."

The comment stung, but the triplet didn't respond.

"I know Ozzal created *us* to function as one unit, so our biochemistry gets messed up when we're apart for too long. We can get irritable." He paused before continuing.

"But I don't think that's how Ozzal made you."

"I don't know." The triplet wanted to shut down the conversation as quick as possible. Talking about how they were created rather than born always left him feeling uncomfortable.

"I think you should stay here with him. I think he misses you." The triplet continued.

"No." The twin replied with no hesitation. "In fact I'm leaving first thing in the morning."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm sure everything's cooled off. It's boring here."

There was a long pause.

"I don't think he should be left alone." The triplet said softly.

"What? Are you leaving? Where are you going?" The twin replied curiously, but didn't sound shocked.

"I don't know, I can't stay here. All I'm doing is hurting him."

"He's not going to let you leave."

The triplet sighed. "He has no choice. Neither do I."

 


	13. alone

After struggling to sleep with a headache for hours, the twin finally dragged himself out of bed and out into the house. The sun had just started to rise. Despite not bring very bright in the house, he winced at the contrast between the house and his pitch black room.

The house was silent- the triplet sat at the kitchen counter with his hands pensively folded underneath his chin. He looked at the twin to recognize he was there, but they did not exchange greetings.

"Where's my brother?" The twin asked quietly, surveying the living room.

"He went back home a little while ago."

The twin looked out the front window, down the steps into the city, before raising his head confidently as if to accept the answer- but he did not verbally respond and the house was filled with a tense silence.

"I'm leaving as well."

The twin turned his head to look at the triplet but otherwise didn't move- the words spoken were soft and awkward, as if they were both uncomfortable to say and uncomfortable to hear. The twin did not fully register what his elder brother meant.

"You're going with him?"

The triplet shook his head slowly and frowned. "No, I'm going somewhere else."

"Where are you going?"

"I don't know."

The twin swallowed uncomfortably and paused before he continued talking, but didn't move from where he was standing.

"When will you be back?"

The triplet shook his head again and forced a sympathetic smile. "I can't stay here."

The weight of the words very slowly started to sink in, and the twin slowly turned to face his elder brother as he shook his head and smiled.

"Yes you can, it's fine."

The triplet sighed and got up from his seat, unable to bring himself to look away from his younger brother, unsure how to approach the situation further.

He had been up thinking about what to say to him for what felt like hours: He couldn't stay here. He couldn't bare to hurt his younger brother any more than he already had.

Leaving wasn't an easy decision for him to make, especially with his self control issues- but it was becoming increasingly obvious that nothing would change for the better. It felt like he lashed out more frequently, and even worse, he lashed out for far more reasons.

He was not good with words. He was not used to being in situations where he could choose to put others before himself. As he tried to compose himself so he could logically explain, he felt his heart pounding harder with every passing moment, and each moment felt like an eternity. It would have been a lot easier if the twin was still angry at him.

"It'll be hard at first." He tried to speak softly and calmly, but his voice cracked. He was having trouble holding himself together. He managed to maintain eye contact with the twin, but he could see the twin's eyes start to well up, and it made it increasingly difficult to talk to him. He didn't want to have this conversation, he didn't want to leave. He wanted his younger brother to be happy- he wanted both of them to be happy, but he knew things couldn't continue this way.

The twin couldn't bring himself to say anything- he opened his mouth as if he wanted to respond, but he swallowed nervously instead as if the words wouldn't come out.

The triplet couldn't take his eyes off of him even if he wanted to. Even if the twin looked like he was about to cry, he couldn't bring himself to look away. They stood locked in painful eye contact for several moments.

"Say something." The triplet's voice cracked again and his heart sank. He had to present himself as confident. He didn't want the twin thinking he was anything but 100% sure he was making the right decision.

"Please say something." He repeated louder. He was the one that needed comfort now. He needed to hear the twin's voice.

The twin wiped away tears in an attempt to stop himself from breaking into hysterics.

"It's fine, don't go." He slowly approached his older brother, looking him in the eye before going in to put his arms around him- but the triplet gently pushed him away and kept him at arm's length. The twin smiled, but there was no happiness in his expression. He was not coming to terms with the situation in the way the triplet had hoped.

Again, the twin tried to embrace him only to be pushed away once more.

"Is this because of yesterday? I'm sorry. I'm not mad anymore. I'm sorry."

The twin struggled to get close to his elder brother, but despite his best efforts, he was weak and his brother was strong. The triplet held onto him by his shoulders, keeping him at arm's length as he continued to struggle.

As the twin struggled, he bit his lip and stifled a sob. The tears started falling. Watching him without comforting him was one of the most painful things the triplet had ever had to do. Denying him comfort was a sheer test of will.

He had painful flashbacks of the night this all began. Choking him, then choking him again. He almost killed his younger brother on multiple occasions. He'd never forgive himself.

The twin clawed at his arms and took a swing at his face, landing a punch on his jaw. He just wanted a reaction now.

"Come on, hit me back. Do something. Hurt me." The twin grit his teeth as he talked, stifling another sob, taking another swing at his elder brother's face. The triplet winced in anticipation of the strike, but he did not strike him back. He could have stopped this by holding the twin's fists, but he felt that was a kind of comfort he couldn't offer him.

This wasn't the goodbye he had in mind. He didn't think the twin would try and stop him from leaving.

"Stop it."

The twin froze and looked up at him, tears still falling down his face. He glanced at the triplet's hands, holding his shoulders, keeping him at arm's length. The triplet slowly let go, walking backwards away from him.

"You're just going to leave me alone?"

The twin's voice shook as he spoke.

"You could have the company of almost anyone on the planet. You'll only be alone if you choose to be."

"I want you."

The triplet froze for a few moments before forcing himself to break eye contact. He had to leave now before he changed his mind. He started slowly walking backwards towards the front door.

The twin's breathing became sporadic as he watched him walk to the front door.

"I love you. Don't leave me here."

The twin's legs trembled and and looked like he could fall over at any second. He didn't follow his elder brother, but instead held onto the kitchen counter for support.

Taken aback by the twin's words, the triplet paused for a moment as the words sunk in against his will. He shook his head in disbelief, opening the front door, on the verge of tears himself.

"I hate you." The twin was looking for a reaction, trying to illicit one powerful enough to get his elder brother to change his mind, but he was prolonging the inevitable.

"Good, I don't care." The hurtful words gave the triplet something to focus on. He didn't want to leave on a bad note, but it seemed that it would be the only note he could leave on. The triplet's false anger was short lived, his expression softened as he looked down at the door handle before looking back at the twin, swallowing to clear his throat.

"I have to go."

The twin couldn't bring himself to say anything, but held out a desperate hand as the triplet left, softly closing the door behind him. Finally his legs gave out from under him, and the twin fell to the floor and sobbed helplessly. He clawed at his own face as he clutched his heart and grit his teeth. He sobbed loudly as he curled into a ball, holding his knees to his chest with one hand and covering his face with the other.

The triplet didn't look back. They were both alone now.


	14. Chapter 14

He called once, he called ten times more.

The first call he made went to the triplet's voicemail, but every call after that did not. He must have turned his phone off after the first call.

If the twin would have known, he wouldn't have wasted the one opportunity he had to leave a message. He would have used the opportunity to try one last time to patch things up.

Exhausted, he also called the triplet's brothers, his father, his own brother. No one knew where the triplet was. He hadn't shown up anywhere, and no one seemed concerned- the twin was told he was independent and could take care of himself. It was true, but no one knew what had happened besides him. He wasn't aware that his brother and the triplet had both discussed leaving together the previous night.

He called again. He felt a brief comfort every time he did so. Maybe he'd pick up this time. Maybe he'd turned voicemail back on.

No change.

The sun set. Maybe this was a nightmare he'd wake up from. He kept his eyes glued on his phone in case anyone called him- maybe someone would know where he was and let him know.

He had not moved from the kitchen where he had fallen earlier. He had shifted around, but he did not have the energy or willpower to get up. He hadn't eaten and he had no desire to. His eyesight had blurred and remained unfocused the entire day.

Finally, he got up to his feet. He was cold and numb, and it was difficult to walk, but he slowly and carefully dragged himself over to the sofa. The only light in the house shined in through from the windows, the lights had been off all day.

It must have all been a nightmare. Once he woke up, everything would be back to normal.

He called him again. Still no answer.

Exhausted, he laid down on his side, hugging his knees and holding his phone to his chest. He had no more energy to cry, no energy to do anything except lay on the sofa until he fell asleep.

He could keep his eyes open no longer- but luckily he would wake up to find out it was all a nightmare.


	15. Chapter 15

His body was reluctant to cooperate with his mind- he tried opening his eyes, it took several moments for him to successfully do so.

He felt as though he hadn't slept at all, still exhausted as he was when he laid down. As he came to, he carefully sat up straight on the sofa and looked around.

He was alone.

It wasn't a nightmare after all.

He picked up his phone off the floor, hoping to find a missed call or message from his elder brother, but there was nothing.

He didn't know what to do with himself. He wanted to sleep until he came back. With great effort, he carefully rose to his feet, nearly falling over as he did so. He stood motionless for a few moments, clutching his phone against his heart, trying to gain his bearings. He walked to the front door slowly and went outside, drearily watching the city below him for a few minutes as the sun began to rise. He surveyed the stone steps that led up to his house, hoping he'd see his elder brother coming back, but there was no one.

He turned around and went back inside. He went into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on his face, purposely avoiding looking at his reflection in the mirror. He didn't want to know he looked as bad as he felt.

He opened his bedroom door and stared blankly at the bed. Some of his elder brother's shirts were thrown into a forgotten pile on the floor next to his side of the bed. The twin sat down on the edge of the bed, grabbing what was the triplet's pillow and holding it to his face. He leaned forward as he inhaled- the scent was safe and familiar.

He desperately clutched the pillow as he buried his face in it and sobbed. Gently, he lowered himself off the bed onto the floor and laid down on his side on the pile of his elder brother's forgotten clothes. He clutched the pillow, holding it tightly against him, wrapping his legs around it.

He was losing himself, there was nothing left. He laid there motionlessly as the hours passed and the sky turned dark.

  
x

  
He only got up when it was absolutely necessary- then he'd return to lie down on the pile of clothes in his bedroom, trying to lose track of time and lose track of everything around him. The house slowly devolved into a mess as he neglected it, a supply of used cups and plates amassed on the kitchen counter.

He'd have some food, a glass of water, then he'd go back to laying down on the bedroom floor. He let go of himself, having barely moved in days. He gave up on the thought of his elder brother returning his calls. As the days passed, he tried calling less and less, not a single call going through. Eventually, he smashed his phone to pieces on the floor and left it there.

All of the days blurred together into one experience. No one had come to check up on him. Life seemed to carry on without him.

He was alone.


	16. Chapter 16

There was a timid knock at the front door. Thinking his mind was playing tricks on him, he ignored it initially- but a few moments later, there was another knock.

He laid curled up on the pile of clothes next to the bed, continuing to only get up when it was completely necessary. He'd lost time of how much time had passed, and the small amount of sunlight they'd get per day did him no favors in keeping track.

He stood up too quickly, making himself disoriented. There was another knock at the door.

"I'm coming."

He hadn't heard his own voice in days, but he didn't have the energy to let it surprise him. Holding onto the wall for support, he carefully guided himself out into the house to the front door, pausing before he opened it.

He was met by a man he didn't recognize- a well-dressed man only slightly taller in stature stood before him, taking his hat off and gripping it in his hand uncertainly as they made eye contact.

"Please excuse the unannounced intrusion. I assure you it would not be necessary if it was not of utmost importance. Is your brother here as well?"

The twin was unphased and disinterested by the man. "No. What is it?"

The man nodded uncomfortably in understanding, gripping his hat tightly.

"Your father's died."

The twin froze in disbelief, eyes darting around the man's figure, trying to determine to himself why he would say such a thing.

"No he's not." He replied after a few moments of silence.

"I'm sorry." The man paused before continuing. "He was lost in a teleportation pod malfunction on the way back from a trade meeting with a nearby planet."

"That's not possible."

"I'm sorry. I know it's not easy." The man flipped through his clipboard, half-heartedly looking for something as he paid careful attention to how the twin reacted.

"Who are you? What relation are you to my father?" The twin asked, slightly irritated as he slowly realized the man may not be lying.

"I was his adviser. This isn't easy for any of us." He looked over some papers carefully before handing them to the twin, who uneasily stared at them for a few moments before taking them.

"I know you will need some time to come to terms with it, and I don't mean to pressure you, but he has of course left you and your brother his entire estate. We cannot force you to make any decision you don't want to, but both of you are first in line to take over for him."

The twin stared at the papers he'd been handed in shock, unable to respond to the man. The man seemed to understand, nodding mournfully before taking a cautious step back.

"If you need anything- anything at all, my number's on the paper. I can arrange for you to have a personal adviser or any comfort you may need to help you.

The twin shook his head in horrified disbelief as the weight of the situation finally dawned on him. The man let out a heavy sigh, bowing in respect before retreating back down the stairs. Once he was out of earshot, the man pulled out a phone to make a call as he continued to walk away.

He did not have the willpower to call his brother right now. The news would be widespread within a few hours anyway.

He knew by now he would not wake up- he was not having a nightmare. He couldn't bring himself to cry.

Ozzal was not very close with any of his sons, and his upbringing and place of power made it hard for him to function as a regular father figure most of the time. When he saw his children, it was usually brief and diplomatic. He provided everything they could ever want, and he made sure someone was always there for him, even if it was not himself. He tried, but his role as ruler was more important than being a father.

He never hated his father by any means, but they had never been as close as they should have been. Now they'd never have the opportunity to get close at all.

His mind shifted to the crystal labs he had visited and grown desensitized to. He wondered if his father's body had been salvaged from the ship and what would be done with it. Emotionally drained, the intrusive thoughts did not bother him in the slightest.

He looked at his hands with disinterest, wondering why he didn't care as much as he should. With no desire to contact his brother about what happened, he returned to the bedroom, carefully lying down in the pile of clothes he had been curled up in before.

Losing the will to care about anything other than sleeping, he closed his eyes and gripped his pillow, no longer holding onto the hope that he'd wake up and find out it was all just a nightmare.


	17. Chapter 17

He no longer ate, he was no longer hungry. Lacking the willpower to get up, he laid on the floor for days straight without moving, clutching his pillow weakly and breathing slowly. He was inviting death and he was not going to fight it. He couldn't think straight- he had not thought about his father's passing since the day it happened.

There was a knock on the front door. He opened his eyes slightly, but made no effort to get up or identify the sound. After a few moments passed, there was a more persistent, but quieter knocking. He closed his eyes as the noise continued, becoming more and more muffled as the moments passed. The noise finally tapered off into silence, but was replaced with a pulsing ringing in his ears. He thought he felt the ground shake, but he couldn't bring himself to open his eyes and see if it was just his imagination or not.

Finally, he drifted back off into a deep sleep.


	18. Chapter 18

Slowly coming to, the twin opened his eyes slightly, unable to take in the environment around him. Laying in a hospital bed, he was hooked up to several machines, needles carefully being held in place on his arm and neck with elastic and cotton. Every so often, one of the machines would make a noise comparable to a low pitched, drawn out gasp, and the twin's hand would tense up into a weak fist.

It took him several minutes to even begin to realize he wasn't home. His eyesight didn't fully adjust and everything stayed cloudy around him. The room and everything in it was a sterile white, the door propped open with a doorstop. Voices from outside the room went large unheard to him.

Being on a fair amount of muscle relaxers and pain killers, it was hard for him to react to anything. His senses were very poor.

His attention was drawn to some movement next to his bed, where his elder brother sat in a visitor's chair, hunched forward and sadly flipping through a magazine. Eventually the triplet looked up to see his brother awake, nearly dropping his book in shock. He stared at his younger brother wide-eyed, uncertain of what to do or say. The twin's eyes darted around his figure as he weakly turned his head towards him, otherwise unmoving. His lip twitched before he smiled, and as he smiled he tried to hold back tears to no avail.

Without realizing it, the triplet shook his head slightly.

"Don't cry. Everything's okay."

Though the twin could vaguely hear him, his words blurred together and he couldn't decipher them, but the noise was comforting. He had felt like he hadn't seen or interacted with anyone for weeks.

Weakly, he held his hand out towards his elder brother, who very carefully gripped it in his own. While the twin's gaze darted uncertainly around, his elder brother didn't take his eyes off of his.

The twin opened his mouth to say something, his elder brother watching attentively while leaning forward towards him. The twin swallowed, closing his mouth when he realized he couldn't speak. He looked at his free hand in horror, panicking as the ringing in his ears got louder and louder. Feeling himself lose consciousness, he weakly squeezed his elder brother's hand, who securely held his hand in both of his. Within a few moments, the ringing stopped and he fell back into his unconscious state.

 

By the time he had woke back up, the room had fallen dark with the only light being let in from the hallway and the machines he was hooked up to. It was enough to vaguely make out shapes in the room, but it was challenging to him as his vision remained poor as before.

The twin turned his head to the left to find his elder brother had moved his chair next to his bed, still securely holding onto his hand. He was asleep- and in his sleep every so often he would squeeze his younger brother's hand tightly, wincing as if he was in pain. Though the twin could vaguely see it, he did not feel it, but it was a great comfort to him anyway.

As a door opened and closed loudly in the distance, the triplet snapped awake, alertly looking over at his younger brother. He forced a smile and gently squeezed the twin's hand. As he heard footsteps approaching the door, he withdrew his hand, holding his arms in front of him.

"No..." The twin heard himself speak, but he wasn't sure if the words made their way out loud.

A short figure dressed in a white hospital coat knocked on the door gently before turning on a dim light in the room, walking in slowly with a bag of medical equipment.

"How are you feeling?" The nurse asked cheerfully as she fat in a chair on the other side of the twin, checking his vitals and replacing a couple of his IVs with new ones. The twin didn't answer, still staring over in the direction of his elder brother.

"Your vitals are good. You're on your way to a good, quick recovery." The nurse said as she slipped a stethoscope under the twin's robe. He frowned, but he lacked the energy to do anything beyond that. The nurse exchanged some words with the triplet, who eagerly paid close attention to what they had to say, but the twin couldn't bring himself to focus on the conversation. Though he was not as out of it as he was before he fell back asleep, the muscle relaxants were still taking a toll on him.

After they were done conversing, the nurse left a couple water bottles with them, waving cheerfully as she left, keeping the dimmed light on as she exited the room.

The triplet turned to face his younger brother, moving his chair to be a little closer to him before swallowing nervously, unsure of how conscious the twin was. They locked themselves in uncertain eye contact before the triplet remembered the water bottles he was handed, unscrewing the top off of one of them and holding it up to the twin's lips. The twin weakly drank, extending his hand to take the bottle, but his elder brother kept a grip on it just in case the twin dropped it.

After he'd finished the bottle, he gasped for air weakly, gazing off into the room as he tried his best to come to his senses despite his poor senses. The triplet watched him carefully, but did not prompt him to speak or do anything that would require energy.

"I'm dreaming."

The twin spoke after a few minutes before leaning back and resting his head back on his pillow.

The triplet shook his head. "You're not."

Unphased, the twin calmly looked around the room without moving. Eventually he turned his head to face his elder brother, as if accepting he was telling the truth and expecting him to elaborate.

"Do you know where you are?" The triplet asked for the sole purpose of trying to gauge the twin's alertness, planning to base his response around whether or not the twin was with him enough to have a conversation that they needed to have eventually.

"Hospital." The twin answered weakly. The triplet smiled, but it wasn't a happy smile.

"That's right. But you're doing good, and we'll get you home soon."

The twin was unphased with no change in facial expression as his elder brother talked, despite registering his response.

"I came to check up on you." The triplet continued, speaking softly. It was difficult for him to recount the events.

"I found you passed out on the floor in your bedroom."

There were a few moments of silence before the twin swallowed uneasily. "Why did you check up on me?"

"Father-"  
The triplet paused, unsure if his younger brother had heard of their father's death or if it were truly the best time to be having this conversation.

"You should have just went home. You should have let me die." The twin said calmly. He frowned and he bit his lip. He was trying to stay calm, but it become exponentially difficult as the medicines wore off.

"No, absolutely not." The triplet's voice shook as he responded. The twin's words scared him. As soon as they were spoke, he knew he would never forget them.

"Why are you here now?"

The triplet looked at him with mild panic, not knowing how to respond. He assumed their father dying was the cause for his misery, and so he didn't want to make the conversation about himself.

The triplet didn't respond. The twin's eyes widened as he quickly came off the medications previously keeping him calm.

"Kill me."

The triplet barely had time to react as his younger brother ripped the IVs out of his arm and neck, gritting his teeth as he started to shake with emotion soon after the machines were ripped from him. A quiet, persistent beeping alarmed the hospital staff that something was wrong, and just as the triplet got up to restrain his little brother, two nurses came in. One quickly subdued the twin with an injection to his neck, wiping the area with a disinfectant after. Within moments, the twin's expression softened and he went limp. The other nurse fixed him back up, changing out the IVs and very carefully securing them where they were before.

Everything had happened so quickly that the triplet could barely register what had happened. Realizing he was shaking and had broken into a sweat, he sat back down where he was before. It was hard to look at his younger brother before- but it was twice as hard now.

"He'll be alright," One of the nurses offered him some reassuring words. "We just need to keep him better subdued until he's healed enough to go home. Environments like this take their toll on all of us."

"How long do you think it will take?"

"Hard to say, but he is making good progress. He's holding down fluid well. We can probably have him off of pain killers." The nurse paused for a moment. "We'll assess him for release on a consistent basis. It could be as short as a few days."

The triplet nodded in understanding.

"And there's no pressure for you to stay the entire time. Hospitals aren't a fun place. I'm sure you're very busy and I assure you he's in good hands.

"I'm staying until he's well enough to come home with me." He responded firmly and adamantly.

"That's fine." The nurse smiled cheerfully. "I'm sure he appreciates your company, even if it's best that he sleeps through most of it."

"Maybe."

After the nurse left, he returned his full attention to his younger brother, swallowing nervously at the sight. His hair was damp, sweat rolling down his forehead. Even unconscious, he looked like he was in pain. The triplet gently pushed the twin's hair out of his face, tucking it behind his ear before holding a hand up to his forehead to find he was burning up. He gently lowered his hand down and touched his younger brother's cheek gently, keeping it there, hesitant to take it away.

The twin didn't deserve what he was going through. The situation probably could have been avoided in a hundred different ways if he hadn't left the twin. He didn't want to wallow in self pity, he wanted to pretend he didn't exist.

Hand still resting on his younger brother's cheek, he listened to the dull, quiet sounds of the machines that were fixing him. He breathed deeply, withdrawing his hand before leaning forward and burying his head in both of his hands.

He wondered what would be the new normal once they got out of here. He wondered what home was to himself. He never wanted to leave his younger brother alone again after this. Home was wherever he was.


	19. Chapter 19

Recovery was steady, quicker than they originally theorized it would be. The twin could only stay awake for small periods of time, staying conscious long enough to eat and drink only to fall back asleep immediately after. He'd have some trouble eating, and his elder brother would instinctively offer him help, but he was denied.

During his recovery, neither of them really exchanged a word outside of the twin's elder brother asking him if he needed anything, to which he'd always silently reply by shaking his head. Despite the lack of communication, the triplet caught him staring over at him, looking troubled as if he wanted to say something but couldn't bring himself to. The triplet didn't know what could have been going through the twin's head as he laid there bed bound.

"Want to talk?"

The triplet asked him softly- and after a few moments the twin shook his head weakly. Watching him carefully, the triplet extended a hand towards him slowly to give him a chance to stop him if he wanted to. He placed his hand on the twin's head, then running his fingers through his hair, watching his face for any change of expression in case he should stop.

The twin's expression softened as his elder brother continued, and he soon closed his eyes after letting out a deep sigh. His head fell gently to the side as he fell back asleep, looking a little more peaceful than he had been before.

After a few more days of resting, he was able to stay awake for longer periods of time. The doctors insisted he start some light physical therapy- so they'd have him stand up and walk around short distances. It proved difficult at first, and he was a little humiliated by it, but the therapy proved to be beneficial almost immediately. With the exercise, he was able to gain a good amount of his strength back and stay awake for longer. Despite this, he only spoke when it was absolutely necessary. He and his elder brother did not exchange a single word.

The triplet awoke to a tapping on his shoulder, immediately sitting up straight to see one of the nurses that had been overseeing the twin's recovery. Looking over revealed the twin was asleep as well. He wondered how long they'd been out. In contrast to his younger brother, the triplet had not been getting as much sleep as he should have been.

"Sorry to intrude. But I have some good news I wanted to run by you."

"What is it?" He replied as politely as possible, still in the process of waking up. He must have been out for hours.

"The doctors say he should be good to go soon as you're ready to go. I wanted to make sure you knew first. If you feel it necessary for him to stay longer, we can keep him for longer, but with persistent mild exercise and healthy meals he should be alright on his own. Then if any problems arise, you can come back immediately."

The nurse paused for a response.

"Alright."

  
A few hours later, they stepped out of the hospital into the dark. The twin stopped in his tracks and visibly shivered. Poor circulation coupled with being bed bound for a week did him no favors. He was a little out of it but slowly coming to. While he did not like being in the hospital and did not protest going home in the slightest, now that they had left, his mind raced with the possibilities of what would happen next. He was about to be alone again.

He swallowed, trying to hide his fear.

"Can we get something to eat?"

"Of course."

To the twin's relief, his elder brother didn't seem concerned with his voice shaking. He wanted to prolong going home as long as possible. He didn't want to be alone. Being bedbound did him no favors in cementing the innate need to avoid being by himself.

They dropped by an eatery that had been heavily influenced by Earth culture back when the twins had been away. He hadn't had real food in weeks. Despite being hungry, he ate slowly. He could sense the triplet watching him, but was scared to make eye contact- feeling as though he might burst into tears if he did.

Once they were done, the twin asked if they could walk around the city for a while to get some fresh air. Fresh air was just a concept- their sector was highly industrialized, and while pollution didn't affect most people's health negatively, there simply was no fresh air to be had.

The only thing he could think about was prolonging returning home as long as possible. He couldn't concentrate on anything around them as they walked- for all he knew the triplet had talked to him and he hadn't heard it. Soon he heard nothing but his heartbeat and a ringing in his ears. He slowed down, weakly reaching out to hold onto his elder brother's arm as he continued walking forward to the best of his abilities.

"Let's get you home." The triplet said softly as he watched his younger brother with uncertainty.

"I don't want to go yet."

Sighing deeply, the triplet put his arm around his shoulder for support in case he threatened to collapse and they slowly continued walking.

Eventually, the twin tightened his grip on his elder brother's arm as his legs started to give out.The triplet didn't allow him to fall, but slowly and carefully lowered him down to sit on the curb. Exhausted, the twin hugged his knees and hid his face in them.

"Come on, we should get you home." The triplet sat right next to him, watching him with an uncertain sadness. The twin tried to lean over to lay down on his side, but the triplet put his arm firmly around him so that he couldn't move.

"I just need to sit for a second." The twin said weakly, not looking up, scared that he'd wind up shaking or bursting into tears if he saw his elder brother. The triplet honored his request, sitting patiently with him, keeping his arm around him to keep him upright. Exhausted and scared, the twin struggled to keep his eyes open.

"Let's get you home." The triplet repeated himself after a few minutes. "I know you're tired. This isn't the best place to rest."

The twin didn't move or open his eyes. Scared that his voice would shake and he'd no longer pass for merely being tired, he couldn't bring himself to protest him.

After waiting a few seconds, the triplet sighed, carefully getting to his feet before putting his arms around his younger brother and gently lifting him up. Too weak to physically protest, the twin's eyes watered, and he didn't move a muscle to do anything about it. The triplet smiled down at him as he carefully walked back in the direction of home, but it wasn't a happy smile. The twin stared off into the distance, head cocked firmly away from the triplet, knowing he'd burst into tears if they made eye contact.

He held out well enough, but when they got to the bottom of the stairs and the house was in sight, he could feel tears rolling down his cheeks. He grit his teeth, scared and angry with himself, but lacking the energy to do anything- especially when he didn't know what to do.

"Why are you crying?" The triplet asked as he made his way up the stairs, consciously avoiding eye contact, scared that he would cry too. It was painful to see his younger brother like this.

Finally making it to the top of the stairs, he unlocked the door and stepped inside with the twin, carefully placing him down on the sofa before looking around to make sure nothing was out of place. It seemed no one had been here since they left.

The twin brought his legs up onto the sofa, hugging his knees and trying to hide his face before gently falling onto his side, head resting on the arm of the sofa. He sobbed audibly, grabbing at his face, trying to hide the fact that he was quickly going into hysterics.

It was painful to watch, but the triplet couldn't bring himself to look away. He sat down next to the twin and watched him painfully, unable to look away. He knew there was a lot to be upset about, but if he didn't know exactly what was wrong, he didn't know how to help.

"You should have let me die here."

The words gave the triplet the chills.

"I would truly rather be dead than stay here." He continued before his elder brother could respond. With a fair amount of struggling, he pulled himself upright, hugging his knees tightly. Sweat and tears caused his hair to stick to his face. He swallowed, biting his lip as if to try and calm himself down, but the tears continued rolling.

His elder brother watched him with pain in his eyes.

"We need to talk about this. I want to help with whatever's hurting you."

He was met with silence, the twin still gripping at his knees tightly.

"Everyone copes with loss in different ways. It's okay to be upset. I'm not trying to tell you to stop being upset." He paused as he carefully thought about every word he was saying to make sure it made sense. Despite being better composed than his younger brother, he was hurting too.

"... The problem is it's not worth dying or giving up over. You have people who care about you and want to help you through this. Father's death affected us all in different ways."

"Ozzal..."

The triplet smiled faintly at the response.

"Father. We may not have always been on the same wavelength, but he was our father. I think in his passing we should refer to him that way."

"He wasn't there for us. I don't care if he was our father or not. I don't care if he gave us everything we could want. He was never there for us." The twin's voice shook slightly as he spoke.

"I don't know if that's appropriate to say." The triplet replied as gently as he could despite being taken aback by the harsh comments. He had thought that the twin was taking his death poorly, but that was proving to not be the case.

The twin lifted his head up to speak more clearly.

"I don't care. This isn't about him. He's gone."

The triplet inhaled deeply, a little frustrated with his younger brother. "Don't be like this. He loved all of us."

There was a long stretch of silence.

"I just don't want to be alone." The twin's voice trembled as if he was fighting with himself over the words he spoke. He was light headed, wearing himself out.

"You're just going to leave again when I fall asleep." He continued. The more he consciously tried to speak clearly, the more his voice trembled. The only way he could bring himself to speak was to not listen to himself.

The triplet's heart sank as he watched his younger brother, now aware of a situation he didn't realize existed before. His eyes darted around the twin's figure in silence, trying to think of a response.

"I don't know what to say."

He hoped the twin would say something, but there was only silence, as if the twin was taking in what he'd just said.

"I thought you wanted me to leave. That's why I left in the first place." Even his voice shook now. He knew the twin had wanted him to stay- but he was also aware of how much pain he had been causing by doing so. He didn't think he'd be causing even more by leaving.

He paused for a moment, unable to take his eyes off his younger brother. "I just thought you'd get over it and everything would be better for you."

He waited for a response but was met with silence.

"Is that really what you're upset about? Me leaving?"

He reflected on his actions. When the news of Ozzal dying made its way to him, his first instinct was to come back home to be there for his younger brother. Despite none of them being very close to Ozzal, the twins were always more sensitive to situations like this. Realizing he was probably the last person the twin would want to see, he'd decided against checking up on him, assuming the twin's brother would come back home to be with him.

After finding out the other twin hadn't come back home, the triplet had called the twin, scared of his reaction were he to show up at the house. After a few days of not picking up calls, the triplet decided against his best judgment he should go and check on him.

Several persistent knocks at the door went unanswered, so he had let himself in. The house was a mess when he had arrived- half eaten food left out, dishes everywhere. Almost everything that was breakable had been broken.

He opened the bedroom door to find the twin passed out in a pile of clothes next to the bed, feeling his body go completely numb at the sight. He checked to make sure he was still breathing before rushing him to the hospital by foot, knowing the sight of him unconscious on the ground would haunt him forever. Would he had come by any later, the twin may have never woken up.

He would never forgive himself for leaving, failing to return the twin's early calls and not checking up on him at a more appropriate time. The weight of the situation took its toll on him all at once as he started to understand his younger brother's pain.

He'd make this work. He'd change, he'd work on his anger issues, he'd get help for the problems that drove him away in the first place. If he was wanted here, he'd stay here no matter the consequences.

Slowly but firmly, he pulled the twin into his chest, holding him close, a hand on his lower back and the other on the back of his head. He stroked the twin's hair as the twin put his arms around his shoulders, burying his face in his neck. The triplet could feel tears roll down his collarbone and instinctively held his younger brother closer in response.

"It's alright, you can cry." The triplet wanted to comfort him the best he could. The twin sobbed, tightening his grip around his elder brother's shoulders to be as close to him as possible.

"You've been through so much." The triplet ran his fingers through the twin's hair gently.

"You were alone when you shouldn't have been. I'm sorry."

The twin tightened his grip again, his elder brother reciprocating the action. The twin didn't say a word in response. The triplet's shirt was damp from his younger brother's tears.

There was nothing left to say. The silence was oddly comforting, as if it were actively healing both of their wounds. Eventually the twin's grip softened up as he fell asleep. The triplet continued to keep him close.

He started to resent the other twin for not coming to check on his brother upon the news of his father's death- but his short lived anger quickly dissipated when he remembered he didn't check either.

His vision blurred- but he stayed awake as long as possible to take everything in, to enjoy the comforting warmth of the twin against him, trying to think of how things would be from now on.

No matter the sacrifices, he was going to fix this and make things work.


	20. Chapter 20

The twin awoke to complete silence- other than the calm, slow breathing of his elder brother. It took him a few moments to open his eyes. They were both still there on the sofa- triplet's arms securely around the twin's back, holding him tightly against his chest, both of them in the same position the twin fell asleep in.

The twin drearily picked his head up, to which the triplet loosened his grip on him in response. Unsure of if his elder brother had woken up earlier than him or perhaps not slept at all, he stared at him, not entirely convinced he was even really there. His elder brother smiled slightly as their eyes met. The twin nervously swallowed, reaching a hand out to touch his elder brother's face as if to convince himself he was really there. Shortly after, he swallowed nervously as his touch became more desperate, reaching out his other hand to touch the other side of his elder brother's face. The triplet smiled tiredly at the gesture as the twin took back one of his hands and frowned. Feeling his eyes start to tear up, he grabbed and clawed at his own face, unconvinced that this was real and that he was awake.

"Cut that out." His elder brother said softly as he pulled the twin's hands down from his face.

"I'm dreaming." The twin said in response. He felt his voice shake, but was unsure how audible it was.

"Not much of a dream, is it?"

There were a few moments of silence as the twin stared at his elder brother, eyes still tearing up.

"You're still here."

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" The triplet asked gently, amused by the statement.

As the twin's vision darted around his elder brother's face, his elder brother slowly reached up to touch his forehead with the back of his hand. Not to his surprise, it was warm. Despite being well enough to bring home, he would probably have to rest a while to get his health up.

Taking a deep, silent breath, the triplet trailed his hand down from the twin's forehead to his cheek and stroked it gently. Finally losing the battle, tears rolled down the twin's cheeks as he bit his lip, trying to stop it from happening.

"It's okay. Get some rest. I'm not going anywhere." The triplet said softly as he pulled the twin into his chest, securing his arms around him again. He pressed his lips gently to the twin's head and shut his eyes.

The twin let himself relax as his vision blurred. Pressing his ear to the triplet's chest, he heard a gentle, steady heartbeat. With no words left to be said, he finally let himself fall into a comfortable sleep in his elder brother's arms.


	21. Chapter 21

Few words were shared between them over the next few days- the triplet being scared to invoke conversation, both scared of what would be said and scared of his younger brother over-exerting himself while he should be healing. He was twice as pale as he was before the incident, shaky and reserved. It pained the triplet to look at him.

Progress was not rapid, but the twin did show signs of recovery over the few days he'd been back home. Hesitant to let him move, the triplet watched him carefully when it was absolutely necessary for him to get up, but for the most part they both stayed in the living room, the triplet getting the him anything he needed.

He returned from the kitchen with a cup of steaming tea, sitting back down next to his younger brother and holding the mug out to him. The twin slowly reached out to take it, struggling for a moment to get a firm grip on it. The triplet watched him as he slowly held the mug up to his lips and took a small sip, swallowing with a little difficulty. The twin rested his head on the back of the sofa, facing his elder brother, and smiling briefly- but not at anything in particular. His smile quickly disappeared as he cleared his throat weakly.

"Did father ever assign you a name?"

His voice was quiet and raspy, but it was a comforting relief for the triplet to hear. The triplet smiled warmly at the sound, but not the question.

"No."

"Us neither." The twin replied after a few moments of silence. His elder brother thought to pursue the question, as it seemed to come out of the blue, but didn't want to pressure the twin into speaking more than he was comfortable with.

"Maybe we weren't meant to make it this far." The twin added, slowly sitting up straight to put his mug on the coffee table in front of them. His elder brother gently took it from him and set it down, making a small effort to distract himself from his younger brother's comment. The twin brought his knees up onto the sofa, hugging them before turning his body back to face his elder brother. After a short pause, the twin looked up at him expectantly, waiting for some sort of response.

"Don't talk like that."

"I don't mind, though. It doesn't matter. Now less than ever." As the twin talked, his voice became a little more stable, much to his elder brother's relief. Not wanting to pursue the conversation, the triplet let out a defeated sigh and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Tell me something about yourself that I don't know." The twin requested quietly. His elder brother frowned and let out a confused chuckle before looking over at him.

"Like what?"

"Something good. Something your brothers know, but not me."

The triplet smiled as he reclined back and stretched his arms.

"You _are_ my brother."

"You know what I mean." The twin frowned in a mild frustration of which his elder brother found endearing.

"Hmm.." The triplet started, trying to recall anything interesting he'd experienced with his two siblings.

"One of my brothers broke my horn off a while ago. We fought for days." He paused and stifled another chuckle as he recalled the memory. "Really beat the crap out of each other."

"Did it hurt?"

"I guess, that's the point of fighting."

"No, the broken horn." The twin smiled smugly as he clarified, not sure if his elder brother had truly misunderstood or not.

"Oh, no. But it is a strange feeling. Uncomfortable. It nearly snapped clean off. I went into a blind rage, so did he when he realized I was going to retaliate."

"Did you ever forgive each other?"

The triplet paused and frowned as he thought about the question. "Hard to say. We beat on each other pretty bad, but once his injuries healed up, I couldn't tell which one of my brothers did it. They both denied it. I just had to drop it."

"You can't tell each other apart?"

"No, never could. Went through nearly everything together. I'm sure you did too. You had it easy, less of you to keep track of." The triplet smiled as he sighed contentedly. Being the same as his brothers had never bothered him, he'd never given it a second thought.

"I don't think you're all the same." The twin said as he frowned unsurely.

"You don't, huh?" The triplet smiled as he stretched again, resting his head against the back of the sofa and closing his eyes. His younger brother frowned as he stared over at him, before tilting his head down and staring down at his hands.

"I remember..." The twin paused as he tried to recall something that had happened to him while his brother wasn't around. The triplet looked back over at him curiously.

"Two figures had restrained me against a counter in a small space. I was crying and screaming- one held my arms behind me, the other tried to cover my mouth to stop me from screaming." He paused to think, his elder brother leaning closer to him in concern and anticipation of how he was going to continue.

"I think they were trying to pour something in my ears." The twin paused again, frowning. "I remember them parting my hair away and trying to stick something in my ear. Then someone opened the door, there was a lot of screaming. They let go of me. Whoever opened the door picked me up and took me away. I couldn't see, my hair was sticking to my face and I was crying."

He paused again. "Whoever it was told me it was okay to cry, that's all I remember."

The triplet frowned, unsure if he was supposed to recall the same situation, but he remembered nothing.

"Since then I've hated being restrained. I panic." He smiled. "The funny thing is that maybe it was nothing. I can barely remember. I don't even know how long ago this was."

The triplet was met with a wave of guilt- partly for not being able to recall the memory, but mostly because he'd never forgive himself for mistreating his younger brother. He watched his brother closely, unsure if he was going to continue talking.

"Was it you?" The twin asked curiously after a long pause.

"I don't know. I don't remember anything." As the moments passed, the triplet became more concerned with the fact he couldn't remember, being not entirely convinced that it wasn't him and his brothers.

"Was your brother there?" The triplet asked gently. "Would he have been the one to help you?"

"No, definitely not. They were all bigger than me, that's why I thought it may have been you."

"I don't remember anything." The triplet felt himself get increasingly nervous, though he wasn't sure why. He wondered if his own memory betrayed him- perhaps he was one of the ones who restrained the twin, but didn't specifically remember it because they had mistreated the twins so often. That means it would have been one of his brothers who had saved the twin.

"I really don't... remember anything." The triplet repeated himself in confusion. The twin watched him carefully, slowly sitting up when he realized the conversation was making his elder brother uncomfortable.

"So, it wasn't you or your brothers. I wonder who it was then." The twin said confidently to try and put the triplet's mind at ease. He was relatively sure it must have been the triplets, but wasn't going to pursue it further after seeing his elder brother's reaction.

He sighed contentedly before leaning down and lowering his head into his elder brother's lap, curled up on his side, staring out into the room as his elder brother pat his head gently before resting his hand on the twin's shoulder.

"We don't need to talk about what happened, do we?" The twin asked- catching his elder brother off guard. Not knowing how to respond, he squeezed the twin's shoulder gently before stroking his hair. Apparently the twin found this an acceptable response to his question, placing his hand over his elder brother's and closing his eyes, falling asleep shortly after.

They'd have to speak about it eventually- their father's death, the aftermath and what they would do in the future, but for now it was best for the triplet to watch over his younger brother and make sure he recovered.


	22. Chapter 22

"Do you remember anything about being born?"

The twin asked his elder brother as his elder brother helped him undress for a bath. The humidity of the steam made him uncomfortable and a little dizzy- not alarmingly so, but enough to make him feel tired. The bath was more of a hot tub, large and round, separate from the shower.

"I don't think I do. I never thought about it."

The triplet held onto his shoulders as the twin carefully stepped into the bath, slowly lowering himself into the steaming water. He leaned back comfortably and sighed with satisfaction- the hot water did him a world of good. The same could not be said for his elder brother.

"What's the earlier memory you can remember?" The twin asked drearily, eyes closed as he sank deeper into the water. The triplet walked over to the mirror, wiping a small patch of steam off of it to uncomfortably stare at his own reflection. Within a few seconds, the mirror fogged up again.

"I'm not sure," He said after a few moments of silent contemplation. "I've never actually stopped to think about it."

There were a few moments of silence before the twin opened his eyes.

"Am I making you uncomfortable?"

"No, I just can't remember much. I never really stopped to think about it-"

"No, I mean..." The twin cut him off before realized he wasn't sure where his response was going. "I'd like it if you joined me in here."

The triplet let out a nervous chuckle as he tried to busy himself, opening a drawer under the sink and taking out a comb.

"Sorry, pass."

"Alright." The twin smiled as he replied. "Why though?"

"I'm sweating enough as it is. I can't do hot water." The triplet was oddly relieved that his younger brother had asked for an explanation rather than just accept the answer or object to it.

"Really?" The twin's interest piqued, he leaned forward to talk to his elder brother, who took the clamp out of his hair and ran the comb through it as he looked into the fogged up mirror, truthfully unable to see what he was doing.

"It's not that hot though." The twin continued, leaning forward and bringing his knees up to hug them as he watched his elder brother.

"Sorry. I wish it weren't the case. I don't do well in any kind of heat."

"What if it was cold?" The twin asked.

"I think that would defeat the purpose of you having a bath then," The triplet replied cheerfully as he continued to comb his hair.

"I mean in the future."

"We'll see."

The twin sighed, sinking back into the water, satisfied with the answer he was given- but not for more than a few moments.

"What's the worse that can happen if you join me?" He smiled smugly, aware he was pressing his luck.

"I'd probably sweat myself to death, best care scenario, or become unreasonably irritable and dizzy."

"That's not so bad," The twin replied. "That's all? I was worried it would actually be something bad."

"That _is_ bad," his elder brother replied light heartedly, laughing as he spoke. "It's uncomfortable."

"Is it just the water? Is it the situation?"

"Just the water."

"Alright, alright." The twin replied in defeat, but cheerfully. He smiled to himself for a moment, but the smile quickly disappeared.

"Will you stay with me at least? I don't want to be alone."

"Of course."

He had seemed to be making steady progress on recovery, both physically and mentally, over the few days he had been back home. He'd acquired a more prominent fear of being left alone, feeling uneasy even being by himself for more than a few minutes. His elder brother didn't take kindly to being away from him either, being overly protective of him since they'd gotten out of the hospital.  
  
"Have you been to the ocean?"

The twin asked without looking over at the triplet.

"What do you mean?"

"On Earth. The ocean."

Ocean had a different, lesser meaning on their home planet- used almost exclusively as an expression of a group of items or people so large it would span out of eyesight. They did not have large bodies of drinkable water on their planet. It would rain, but the rain did not largely collect anywhere, and it would simply soak back into the ground after a few hours. The closest thing they had to oceans were large chemical fills that were usually scattered around mines- beautiful, but often deadly.

Their rainwater was not drinkable by some, being laced with chemicals that some bodies would reject.

"I haven't. I saw it. We flew over it." The triplet responded.

"I'd like to take you there one day then. I think you'd like it." The twin smiled to himself, sinking lower into the water. Safe water was a commodity on their planet. Only those in power could afford to waste it.

"Yeah? Maybe some day." The triplet smiled. The gesture was oddly heartwarming to him.

Him and his two brothers had spent a fair amount of time conquesting before the twins had become overlords- Earth didn't interest him on the same level that his younger brother found it intriguing. He always found it curious that both of the twins had taken such a shining to it that they'd ran away to stay there. The triplet had no emotional ties to the place- and to an extent, only unpleasant memories based on the brief time that he'd been there. If the twin wanted to go back to visit, they'd visit. Anywhere the twin wanted to go, he'd go too.

There were several minutes of peaceful silence before the twin spoke again.

"I know I'm going to have to follow in father's footsteps."

The triplet was surprised to hear his younger brother bring it up- it was something they would need to talk about, but he didn't think the twin would be willing to so quickly.

"Don't worry about that now." The triplet replied, trying to hide a sigh. "Focus on getting your strength back up."

"I'm not _worried_ about it."

There was another long pause, the triplet expecting the twin to elaborate on what he meant.

"It's funny. When you know you have to do something, it becomes a lot easier to come to terms with."

The triplet watched him curiously. The way the twin worded it alarmed him, as if he was referring more to just his future commitment to taking over for their father.

"I feel my brother's doing well. He has no interest in helping me, not that I'd accept his help. This is my responsibility alone. My brother is dead to me."

" _I'm_ your brother."

The twin smiled at the response as he let out a sigh, eyes still closed. "You always say that as if I don't know. What does it mean in the context of this?"

"It means I'm... I'm your brother." The triplet repeated himself uneasily. Suddenly the emotional weight of realizing the twin's brother had all but abandoned him sank in. It was something he couldn't forgive, and he was scared of what he'd do to him if he saw him again.

The room sunk into a comfortable silence, but it held some type of tension in it.

"I'll meet with his counsel soon." The twin said firmly.

"Worry about recovering first. Hell, even they're worried about you. I'll even go in your place. Let them know you're recovering."

"They're not worried about _me_ ," The twin smiled. "They know their future is in my hands. You might underestimate the amount of power that father gave to us. I can do whatever I want."

"And so you choose to do the responsible thing, follow in father's footsteps." The triplet looked over at him curiously. He couldn't help but be surprised that his younger brother would willingly step up to the task- even though he didn't know exactly what it would entail.

"I still don't think you should rush it. I don't think they expect anything of you right now." He continued.

"You'd make a great adviser, I think." The twin smiled smugly over at his elder brother.

"I don't think I'm qualified for that," He replied, not sure if his younger brother was being serious or not. "I can't even listen to my own advice."

"And _I'm_ qualified to be what's essentially a king?"

The triplet's heart raced for a moment at the words- _a king_. It was true, but it was strange to him refer to himself that way. It helped put things into perspective for the triplet, and he took a deep, silent breath before responding.

"Whatever you want from me, I'll do it."

"I don't want obedience. You're my equal." The twin paused for a moment. "I just don't want to be alone."

"You won't be."

The twin looked down into the water uneasily before looking over at his elder brother- the most unsure and vulnerable he had looked in a long time. The triplet knew that his younger brother had little reason to believe him after what they'd been through, which made him all the more surprised that he was going through with what he had planned to.

"Are you nervous?" His elder brother asked him softly.

"No."


	23. Chapter 23

"Are you nervous _now_?"

A few days had passed. The twin watched his elder brother's face through the bathroom mirror for any change of emotion. He brushed his hair gently as the triplet did the same- both awkwardly getting ready for the council meeting.

"No. Are you?"

The triplet sounded a hair short from stressed, but not nervous- or that's what the twin assumed anyway.

"No."

They made eye contact through the mirror and the twin smiled confidently for a moment before looking away to find a rubber band, pulling his hair back off of his neck and putting it into a ponytail. They both had their uniforms on- the triplet less enthusiastic about it than his younger brother.

"It means a lot to me that you're willing to come with me." The twin said softly as he dabbed concealer under his eyes. "I'm going to find a way to repay you."

"Don't worry about it. I wouldn't have it any other way." The triplet smiled and looked at him briefly as he nonchalantly tried to brush a knot out of his hair.

"I already have something in mind."

"Oh yeah? What's that?" The triplet replied curiously as he swept his hair to the side, letting it hang loosely over his left shoulder. He had been keeping his hair in a loose pony tail for a while, But he felt that changing it up at least for today would give him something small to focus on if he felt nervous at the meeting.

"It's a secret."

The triplet sighed and smiled weakly as he briefly looked at himself in the mirror. He never liked what he saw, but today more than usual he felt it was a depressing sight. He wasn't a fan of the skin tight body suit back when it was made for him and he definitely wasn't a fan now that the most powerful people in the planet were going to see him in it.

He wished he would have spent more time worrying last night so that he could have tired himself out of it. Now he felt frantic, worrying about anything and everything that could go wrong. He wasn't sure if he would even be allowed to attend with the twin- essentially it wasn't his place to do so, and even if he was the spawn of Ozzal, Ozzal had never given the triplets any special permissions or power.

"I'm a little nervous myself." The twin mildly sensed his elder brother's distress, but didn't want to address it directly, sensing he might make it worse. He wasn't very good at helping people calm down, and being aware of this he decided to cut his losses and try a different approach.

"I mean, I know what to expect, and it's not much," He continued. "But I have to be careful. This meeting's most likely just exchanging pleasantries. Normally they'll be about economic balance and trading goods to nearby planets and sectors." He inhaled sharply before continuing. "So lots of document signing and trying to get me to agree to things I shouldn't agree to. They think I'm stupid and uninformed. It's a delicate balance- if I give them what they want, everything will be fine. But I have to be professional and exert leadership while doing so."

He paused and frowned, turning around to look at his elder brother.

"I'm sorry, I'm rambling. I'm nervous."

"It's only natural to be so. You'll be fine. I reckon the first meeting will be the hardest."

"Maybe. At any rate, the quicker we leave, the quicker it'll be over and done with. Let's go."

 

The council palace was a tall, white structure with an impressive courtyard in front of it. A sizable water fountain was at the center- no doubt consisting of a large percentage of their sector's only clean water. Natural rain was acidic, becoming only more acidic when it pooled on the ground. The small amount of drinkable water left was only widely available to those in power, or sold as an expensive commodity.

The building itself must have been made from a material closely related to marble- parts of it would shimmer when it caught light. It was hard to determine if it would have been more impressive during the daytime than it was at night.

Naturally, the perimeter of the area was heavily guarded, as it always had been. The twin had in fact been here with Ozzal several times, a few being when they had recently returned from earth. He was acquainted well enough with the council. The triplet, however, only had vague memories of being forced to attend with Ozzal at a very young age- perhaps before the twins were even born. The memories were fuzzy, moreso because they were never important to him.

A man taller than either of them met them at the front door, bowing his head respectfully. The triplet returned the gesture, unsure once again of what was expected of him, moreso since the twin didn't reciprocate the gesture as he did. His nervousness resurfaced, and he watched the twin carefully to distract himself.

The twin reached out to shake the man's hand firmly- then the man hesitantly reached out to shake the triplet's hand as well. His apparent uneasiness made the triplet more nervous, as he wasn't sure of his place here. He had recently spoken to the council while the twin was recovering in the hospital and everything seemed to go smoothly, but the circumstances were different now.

He breathed deeply, trying to mask his nervousness. The man ushered them both inside without a word.

The ceilings were impressively high, with another fountain in the middle of a large, spacious lobby. The water inside smelled strongly of chlorine, or perhaps other chemicals- with some large Koi fish swimming around contentedly in the water. Either pleased or calmed by the fish, the twin smiled warmly as he watched them- briefly bending down to get a better look at them before correcting his posture, standing up straight with his arms folded behind his back.

The silence was broken by a large, metal door being opened at the end of a corridor. Another man briskly walked around the fountain to greet them, signaling to the other man that he could leave.

"Thank you for meeting us so shortly after your recovery." The man bowed, and the twin smiled smugly in response.

"It's nothing." The twin replied as the man led them hastily down the corridor without so much as looking at the triplet. The twin walked confidently- the triplet followed behind him briefly before the twin signaled for him to walk beside him rather than behind. The twin shot him a calm look as they continued down the hallway, where the man unlocked the door with a fingerprint scan.

A set of empty seats were reserved for the twin and triplet at an expensive, oblong table- the members of the council standing up in respect as they entered the room. The triplet let out a quiet sigh of relief that there was a seat for him- he was unsure if he was expected or even welcome.

They sat, and the man that led them took his own seat near the opposite side of the table, sighing and smiling pleasantly.

"Again, thank you for meeting us. We'll try to keep meetings as infrequent as possible until you decide on a workload that seems fair to you."

"Glad to be here." The twin replied calmly and sincerely.

"I trust your recovery is going well?"

The twin paused to think before answering, realizing he wasn't wholly sure how much of the past couple weeks the council was made aware of. To the twin, it was an intimate and personal matter.

"Yes. Thanks."

There was a bit of skepticism in his reply.

The council consisted of around eleven people- a few more on occasion, depending on the type of meeting. This meeting was mostly to exchange pleasantries, get re-acquainted with each other and to sign some trade approval papers. After the twin politely declined to expand on his recovery, they jumped into business matters. A different well-dressed man came out, offering what looked to be glasses of whiskey. Some members declined, but most accepted. The twin graciously accepted the glass as the triplet awkwardly declined, mouthing a silent "no thank you", afraid of interrupting his younger brother.

As the twin looked over papers that he was passed, the triplet realized he had lost track of the conversations that were happening. They discussed trade routes, bartering for luxury goods with other sectors and nearby planets. They discussed sending agents to other planets in shuttles and expanding mining outposts. He kept focused on the twin, admittedly surprised by how well he fit into the council. The twin was more acquainted with the council than his elder brother was, but it was still surprising how professional his demeanor had become since they were with the council.

The twin must have signed ten or so documents, confirming and verifying trade treaties. No one had so much as looked at the triplet as far as he could tell, but most of his nervousness had stemmed from being unsure if he was expected at the council at all- so once he knew he had a seat reserved for him, he was able to calm down.

Still, he wished that he could better follow the conversations that were happening, silently dreading the hypothetical moment the twin or anyone else turned to him for an opinion or response, but he found he could only focus on his younger brother- his body language was both relaxed and powerful, he knew what he was talking about, he knew what he was signing. The triplet smiled briefly, but stopping when he noticed it had caused one of the council members to stare at him.

He realized that the twin hadn't so much as acknowledged him since they sat down- while it didn't seem to be necessary for anything, it did worry him a little. The thought of being dead weight someplace so important was embarrassing to him.

They had both lost track of time by the time the meeting had slowed. Once it was officially adjourned, the council members casually shook hands with the twin. One member timidly reached out to shake the triplet's hand, smiling warmly when the gesture was reciprocated.

"I'm sorry, while we were expecting the two of you, we're not sure of your position on the council. We were unsure if it would be appropriate to address you during the meeting unless you spoke first."

"I, uh..." The triplet wasn't sure how to respond, threatening to trip over his words.

"That is for him to decide." The twin cut in to answer for him. "But I'll see that he gets respect equal to me. He's my brother. He won't need my approval to talk or make decisions."

"Of course. I'm sorry. I meant no harm."

The triplet just about felt his face go red with embarrassment at his younger brother's words. Flustered, he looked away as another member of council approached the twin slowly, frowning slightly with an expensive looking silk bag in his hand. The triplet felt his heart sink, knowing immediately the contents of the bag. The man very carefully held it out for the twin to take, not saying a word.

"What's this?" The twin frowned as he asked curiously. As he reached out to take the bag, his elder brother cut him off.

"I think I should take it." The man immediately looked relieved, handing the bag to the triplet without question.

"Thank you. Take excellent care. It was a pleasure seeing you both."

"You as well." The triplet reciprocated the pleasantry as they were escorted back outside.

 

"Would you like an escort home?"

"We're okay. Thanks." The twin responded after pausing in case his elder brother wanted to answer.

"Alright, take care." The man bowed once more before turning back and going inside.

It was hard to tell how much time had passed while they were there. Not only did the conversations blur together, but it was dark when they arrived and dark when they left. Clocks and timekeeping methods were not widely used around here. A simple timer in public spaces would indicate the rise and fall of the sun, but that was about it.

They walked home in a silence that was only broken when the twin let out an audible sigh.

"What's up?" The triplet asked, feeling a pang of guilt for having broken the silence. It wasn't an awkward silence, but perhaps the twin was deep in thought.

"Did I make a fool out of myself?"

The triplet smiled empathetically. "Of course not. If I didn't know any better I would have thought this was a normal thing for you. It's like you were meant to do this."

He looked down at the twin as they kept walking, trying to gauge his reaction.

"I'm impressed." He added before looking away. The twin felt himself immediately relax, and he smiled to himself as they finished silently walking home.

The twin took his boots off the second he walked in the front door. He stood up straight and paused as if trying to remember something- then he smiled, letting out a content sigh, glad that the meeting was over. He let his hair down before he looked over at his elder brother with a genuine contentedness.

"That's that, I guess." He said as he exhaled before turning his attention to the bag that his elder brother had been given at the palace. Upon the triplet noticing him stare at the bag, he walked it over to the kitchen table, trying to avoid eye contact and hoping to prolong the inevitable.

"So what's the bag for?" The twin asked, wholly unaware of the triplet's uneasiness about it. The triplet felt his heart sink and he waved the twin over to the table, trying to silence a sigh. He wasn't doing either of them any favors by acting like he was uneasy or upset.

"Why don't we find out together?" The triplet heard himself say out loud- despite knowing full well what was given to them. It was discussed with him while the twin was recovering in the hospital, but had went forgotten until now.

The twin shot him a skeptical look as he carefully reached for the bag, slowly, to give the triplet enough time to intervene if he felt it necessary or didn't want him to touch the bag.

It seemed to be made out of a heavy silk material, with multiple ornate buttons covering a zipper. The twin gently opened the bag to reveal a heavy wooden box. The twin shot another confused glance at his elder brother before unlatching the lid of the box and carefully taking it off.

Fastened in place in the box was an ornate golden urn- and it took the twin a few moments to realize that's what it was. When he realized, he quickly put the lid back on the box and turned away, as if fed up with the situation- or perhaps not prepared for what he saw.

"Ah, fuck." He said as he dragged his hand down his face and smiled as he felt tears well up in his eyes against his will. He was light years away from being willing and able to cope with Ozzal's death and the circumstances surrounding it. He paused, letting his bewilderment and sorrow turn quickly into skepticism. The triplet watched him helplessly, putting the box back in the bag and putting the bag on the kitchen counter behind him, as he could think of nowhere else to put it for now.

"Why wasn't I made aware of this?" The twin heard his voice crack as he tried to maintain composure, lacking the willpower to turn around to face his elder brother.

"You were in the hospital. They needed to make a decision quickly. I was the one they felt most qualified to make the decision at the time."

"What decision?" The twin asked, despite knowing the answer, as his voice shook. The triplet watched him helplessly, but unsure of if any other decision would have been less painful.

"To have father cremated and sent back to us." The triplet's voice shook as well. It was a painful conversation to have- and admittedly may have been a conversation better suited at a later date, but he wasn't aware of the council giving them the urn so soon.

The twin stood motionless for a few moments before taking his hand down from his face, still standing away from his elder brother. His cheeks were wet- the triplet could see the twin was trying very hard to hold himself together.

"I'm sorry." The triplet didn't know what else to say. He didn't know if it was appropriate to comfort his younger brother, unable to gauge if he was upset with him specifically. After a few moments of awkward silence, he took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry," He reiterated softly. "It's hard for me too. I had to authorize the decision. This is all new to me, too. I never thought I'd have to make a decision like this."

Still avoiding facing his elder brother, the twin sat down at the table and clutched his head. The triplet watched him carefully- he looked emotionless, as if he drained himself of any emotion.

He walked slowly over to the twin and placed a hand on his back before pulling up a chair close to him and sitting down as well. The twin's expression softened as his elder brother gently rubbed his back.

They sat there in silence for several minutes, the triplet watching his younger brother carefully the entire time, gently trying to comfort him. Eventually the twin slowly took his hands away from his face, folding them thoughtfully on the table.

"Do you think he'd be proud of me?" The twin asked softly without looking up, eyes fixed calmly on the table. The triplet smiled softly at the question.

"Of course he would be," He answered softly but enthusiastically. "Of course."

The twin's expression didn't change, but he didn't come off as upset. His words were soft and dull, exhausted.

"What about you?" The twin asked, eyes still focused on the table.

"What do you mean?" The triplet felt himself smile, and felt warmth in the response. He gently ran his fingers through the twin's hair a few times, still carefully watching him.

"Are you proud of me?"

The triplet paused- the twin looked over at him without moving his head.

"Of course." He frowned and swallowed nervously, taking his hand back. He took a deep breath, unsure if he should continue.

"Of course I am." He continued adamantly and confidently. "You're doing something no one else can do. You're doing something you shouldn't have ever had to do. You're... assuming a monumental role on your own free will. You're doing it after being through so much."

He paused and swallowed nervously, not thinking about what he said before he said it.

"And you don't have to go through it alone. Hell, you don't have to go through it at all. The council was speechless you were willing to take over for father at all, let alone so soon."

He paused.

"You're incredible. You're doing an incredible thing. " _Of course I'm proud of you._ "

Other than his brow twitching, the twin sat frozen for a few minutes in silence before swallowing nervously and pushing his hair back behind his ear out of his face.

"I think..." He started to say, but paused for a moment when he realized his voice was shaking. He swallowed again before continuing.

"I think I just want to prove I can do something right. I don't even want the power this gives me."

He paused and sat up straight, staring off into the kitchen.

"It makes me feel empty. I think I like that."

The triplet frowned and leaned closer to him, watching him silently. The sentiment made him feel uneasy, but he wasn't sure how to respond to it.

"Sometimes I want to be a machine. I think this is as close as I'm going to get."

"Why do you want that?" The triplet felt his voice shake as he replied.

"...Maybe I can do something right," The twin replied after a few moments. "Maybe I can finally do something right and not fuck it up."

The twin smiled, but it wasn't a sincere smile. "Do you think I can do that?"

"Of course." The triplet became increasingly wary of the conversation, and increasingly unsure of the right thing to say in response. He inhaled sharply before continuing.

"But you're making it sound like all you've done before now was wrong. You don't need to redeem yourself. You've done nothing wrong. I don't understand."

The twin's brow twitched again, eyes still fixed on the kitchen.

"I've been awful to you. I don't know what to do. I dragged you into all this." His voice cracked as he continued. "I feel like I'm supposed to be alone. I don't know what to do."

The triplet watched him carefully. He shouldn't have let either of them take the urn. Perhaps that was the catalyst in how the twin felt right now- but that would have been preferable to the twin feeling this way all along, bottling it up as he went.

The twin's eyes welled up again, his elder brother's heart sinking at the sight. He slowly lifted his hand, giving the twin a chance to react if he wanted to, but he didn't react. The triplet gently reached out to touch his younger brother's cheek before stroking his hair.

"Relax." He didn't know how to help him.

"Do you feel like you need to be here?" The twin asked, ignoring the sentiment. After a few moments with no response, he turned his head slightly to look at his brother, still on the verge of crying.

"Do you feel... bad for me? Do you pity me?" The twin reiterated- not with anger in his voice, but with fear. Tears finally fell down his cheeks as he continued.

"I'm selfish, I'm sorry. But I don't want you to feel like you have to be with me through this, even if I act like I do. I don't want you to feel trapped. I feel like I'm trying to control your life and I'm realizing I need to move on and let go."

The words pained his elder brother. Now more than ever he wanted to be exactly where he was right now, but he didn't know how to convey that to his younger brother. He was better in situations where the twin was irritated or upset, but this was genuine helplessness.

"Look at me," The triplet heard himself say. The twin inhaled sharply, turning to face him, but unable to look him in the eyes. The triplet stroked his hair gently, smiling slightly before touching his cheek. The twin briefly looked him in the eye before looking away without moving his head. That was good enough for his elder brother.

"I guess words can only mean so much," The triplet said softly. "But I'm where I want to be and I'll prove it." He stroked his younger brother's cheek, not taking his eyes off him. The twin looked back over at him after a few moments had passed.

The triplet looked him in the eyes as he gathered his thoughts.

"I am exactly where I want to be. I know time is the only thing that will help me prove that. I know."

The twin's gaze darted around, sadly taking in his elder brother's facial features, unable to focus on any one thing. The triplet looked down for a moment, collecting his thoughts, before looking back up. He softly pushed a stray clump of hair off of the twin's face, tucking it behind his ear, and let out an audible sigh.

"Do you..." The triplet paused, his brow furrowing involuntarily. He looked off to the side, seemingly confused, as he took his hands back and folded his arms. The twin watched him carefully, waiting for him to continue.

"Does it matter that it's me?" The triplet asked, seemingly frustrated with himself.

"What do you mean?" The twin shook his head slightly at the question, taken slightly aback with confusion. The triplet frowned, pausing for a few moments as he tried again to collect his thoughts.

"If you could go through all this... if you could grieve, if you could be on the council with your brother, would that be preferable to me?"

The triplet looked off to the side, trying to determine if his words made sense spoken out loud, scared of the answer he'd receive.

"Because I'll make things right. That's all I meant. I want you to feel secure."

He paused before looking back over at his younger brother. "Even if it has nothing to do with me, I want you to be happy."

The twin frowned, bewildered with the sentiment.

"Absolutely what in the world are you talking about?" There was clear but quiet irritation in his voice as he responded. Skeptical, he learned closer to the triplet and met his gaze, as if to better gauge if he was being serious. He leaned back to where he was when he realized he was serious.

"What a stupid thing to say."

The triplet smiled empathetically as if to agree with the sentiment, ultimately unsure if he had worded the question as he had meant to.

"You're right. I'm sorry."

The twin watched him, seemingly visibly upset.

"I don't want to do any of this without you. Why do you think I'm so scared?" As the twin continued talking, his voice started shaking.

"I'd rather be dead than without you. But more than that I'm scared that's why you're staying. Not because you want to, but because you feel like you have to. Is that not clear?"

He bit his lip, frustrated and trying not to cry. "I'm selfish, but I don't know how long I could go on knowing you're only here for my benefit. I can't win. I don't know what to do. I can't brush this off. That's why I feel like I'm supposed to let go. Do you understand?"

He was frustrated- mostly at himself. "I'm sorry. I just feel like there's nothing I can do."

The twin smiled warmly, folding his arms on the table and resting his head in them. The triplet watched him carefully, realizing they were probably both exhausted. He felt that he had nothing left to say that would help the twin.

The triplet reached out to place his hand over one of the twin's hands. It was surprisingly colder than his, causing him to instinctively tighten his grip. His younger brother turned his head to face him and they exchanged a genuine but exhausted smile.

"Thank you," The twin said almost inaudibly, before picking his head back up off the table. He leaned closer to his elder brother, hesitating before putting his arms around his shoulders and resting his head on his chest. The triplet sighed contentedly, putting a hand on his lower back to pull him closer and secure him.

"I know you're going through more than anyone should ever have to go through," The triplet said quietly after a few minutes. He wasn't sure if his younger brother had fallen asleep- and to a degree, he hoped that he had. He had a long and exhausting day, and his elder brother hoped that may have been the catalyst for all of this. Maybe a decent night's sleep would fix everything for both of them.

A few more minutes passed, and it had become evident the twin had fallen asleep. While his elder brother would have been happy for them to stay where they were, he realized the twin slumped over in a chair wasn't the most comfortable place for him to fall asleep.

He pressed his forehead against the twin's head, letting out a sigh before carefully lifting him and carrying him to bed for the night.

He didn't want to tell the twin he could magically make everything better. He doubted himself and his ability to help- and to an extent he felt like little more than extra baggage.

"Good night," He whispered to the twin before returning back out to the kitchen.


	24. Chapter 24

He winced as he tried to force his eyes open- barely aware of being awake at all. It was silent and dark, as always- the only light was from the small gap under the door. He rolled over onto his stomach, sensing he was alone. Despite wanting to get up, he couldn't quite bring himself to. He reached out for the pillow next to him, burying his face into it and inhaling deeply.

Being alone wasn't helping him. Finally, he struggled to his feet, stretching once more before dragging himself out into the house.

The house smelled strongly of coffee- which for some reason was always a comfort to him. On several occasions he would try to figure out why it immediately relaxed him. Perhaps it was because it meant he wasn't alone. Deep inside, he had felt a bit of fear every time he woke up alone.

The triplet was in front of the coffee table, on the floor, doing push ups. He briefly stopped, smiling at his younger brother before continuing.

"What are you doing?" The twin asked drearily, squatting down to closer watch him.

"Sit ups."

"Why?" The twin folded his hands underneath his chin as he continued to watch.

"It'll be good for me."

"Oh." The twin paused, still watching his brother. Letting out a very quiet sigh, he sat down on the floor and hugged his knees.

"Hey, I'm sorry for acting up last night." The twin continued awkwardly- admittedly, it was always difficult for him to apologize. "I think I must have overloaded."

"It's alright. You didn't do anything wrong." The triplet said without looking up at him.

The twin glimpsed around- the bag and urn had evidently been moved out of sight, probably for the best. He briefly wondered where it was, then realized he didn't want to know.

"Did you sleep out here last night?"

"I didn't sleep." The triplet responded without pausing from his push ups.

"Oh... are you okay?"

"I am now."

The twin sighed and smiled at the response, stretching, then lying down on his side, still watching his elder brother.

"Come on, get up. At least lay on the sofa. The floor is cold."

The twin ignored him, still dreary. The triplet sat up for a moment, sighing in defeat before switching to do sit ups. Several minutes went by in silence.

"How would you feel about going somewhere with me?" The twin asked softly.

"Where?"

"It's a secret."

The triplet smiled to himself. "Earth?"

"How did you know?"

"Just a feeling." The triplet sat up, the exercise finally catching up to him.

"... So will you let me take you there?"

"Of course. When?"

"Soon."

"How will we get there?"

"Space pod, I guess. Hide it in a corn field somewhere." The twin let out a chuckle. "That's what everyone seems to do."

The triplet smiled at the sound of the twin laughing. "How much thought have you put into this?"

"Enough thought."

Still smiling, the triplet looked up at the ceiling. "Where exactly did you want to go?"

"Somewhere warm."

"Great, my favorite. Really." He said sarcastically before reaching over to ruffle the twin's hair. Getting to his feet, the triplet went into the kitchen to pour himself a cup of coffee.

"No, trust me." The twin frowned, still laying on the floor. After a few moments, he rolled onto his back and stretched. Taking a sup of his coffee, the triplet walked back over, extending a hand to the twin, who accepted and was pulled up onto his feet. He kept a solid hold on his elder brother's hand after he was pulled up.

"Really, it'll be alright." The twin frowned, as if confused by his elder brother's trepidation.

"If you say so."


	25. Chapter 25

Purposely waking up early to get a headstart, the twin stretched as he struggled to open his eyes. Turning onto his other side revealed he was alone- and slightly less enthusiastic about getting out of bed because of it. With a deep sigh, he stretched again before dragging himself out into the house.

Like the previous day, his elder brother was in the living room focusing on doing push ups. Without pausing, he smiled briefly as the twin came out.

"Am I going to wake up alone every day?" The twin asked- trying to come off as sarcastic and playful, but to a degree he was wary of the impending answer. The triplet smiled sympathetically, pausing before sitting upright on the floor to speak to his younger brother.

"Not if you don't want to."

The twin frowned in response. "I mean, I don't even hear you wake up. I'd wake up with you if I knew when you got up. Hell, I got up early today. You're still out here.

"Well, yeah," The triplet replied. "I'm not going to wake you up just because I'm awake."

"I wish you would."

The triplet sighed and smiled before laying back down to do sit-ups.

"Are you uncomfortable sleeping in the same room as me?" The twin asked.

"That's not it."

"That means there's a reason." The twin frowned as he watched his elder brother. "What is it?"

Sighing again, the triplet took a break from his sit-ups to better concentrate on the conversation.

"Well, what kind of answer do you want? A poorly rehearsed one or a quick one?"

"Just tell me." The twin's uneasiness started to make him impatient.

"I don't know, I just feel like I should get into better shape. Especially if I'm going to go with you to future council meetings. That's all." He rubbed his eyes drearily as he spoke.

"I don't understand. Why?"

The triplet paused awkwardly before responding. "I don't know. I just kind of feel like I'm a joke. Like I'm hindering you."

"Why? Do I treat you like a joke?"

"No-- I don't know. I just sort of felt in the way at the meeting. I feel like once we left, they probably made fun of me. Like, why was I there? What do I do besides sit there and look awkward?"

"That's stupid, stop it." The twin cut in before his elder brother could continue, then paused, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I mean, you're not stupid. But this is a stupid argument. Those meetings are going to be infrequent anyway. You don't even have to go if you don't want to."

The triplet carefully got back up to his feet. "Well, thanks for not taking me seriously."

"Come on, don't be like that." The twin rolled his eyes before going into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. "Please tell me you haven't changed your mind about going to Earth with me. It'll be fun."

"I'll go if you want me to go." The triplet replied, feeling a little short with his younger brother, but trying to make sure he stayed under control.

"Great," The twin answered cheerfully as he drank from his mug. "I woke up early to pack, anyway. We leave soon and we'll make it there before their afternoon."

 

Travel between planets was a very common thing for them- since most of their planet's economy had roots in other planets. That being said, most kinds of travel were quick, common and safe- albeit not available to the regular public, who weren't allowed to leave the planet under normal circumstances anyway.

Spacepods sacrificed walking room and engine size in return for crystal clear communication between planets as well as some of the highest technology available. In the case of an emergency, the pods could be piloted remotely and guided safely home, even in the event of engine damage. The self piloting systems would completely override the mechanics and bring the pod back to their planet safely.

They decided to take one of these pods for their trip- figuring it would take around two hours to reach Earth from now. They'd find some place secure to land around the afternoon, and have the entire day to enjoy themselves- or longer if they wanted.

"You're sure you can fly this thing?" The triplet asked as he looked around from the passenger's seat. He was still feeling a little irritated over how the morning had went- and while he didn't have a history of claustrophobia, he felt a little trapped in such a small space. Unknown to the twin, he'd brought the remote for his collar in case something went wrong abroad.

"Of course. Me and my brother used to take these things out all the time. They had some really nice ones at the council..."

The takeoff was smooth and quiet. The triplet watched his younger brother as he seemed to be stuck in thought.

"Father would let us race around in them. That... wasn't too long ago, actually."

The twin frowned as he recounted the memories. He didn't seem particularly upset, but rather uncomfortable, as if it were something he'd blocked from his memory until now.

The pod fell into an awkward silence as they piloted out into the darkness of space. Their planet was not in a particularly glamorous or appealing part of the galaxy- there was not much to see, neither from the surface of the planet or up above. The planet's sky was often covered in thick, polluted clouds at night- and clear skies were almost always completely black. On very rare occasions, you could see stars.

"I'm sorry if I was short with you this morning," the triplet said softly, finally breaking the silence. He tried to stifle a sigh as he continued. "Lack of sleep, I guess. I don't know."

The triplet knew exactly why he was irritated, even if he wouldn't admit it- but at any rate he felt it would be more beneficial to apologize and get over it before they got to Earth. The twin didn't answer, but frowned as he pretended to concentrate on piloting the ship. The pod was programmed to get from point A to B, and he could steer it manually, but it wasn't necessary and getting off course would be automatically corrected by the piloting system.

"You're so soft and nice, though." After a few moments, the twin's expression softened a little, but he didn't smile or look over at his elder brother. "You don't need to change that."

The triplet was admittedly taken aback by the response, as it had felt like they had both missed a crucial part of conversation. Perhaps the ordeal earlier was still on the twin's mind. Conflicted, the triplet felt neither comfort nor discomfort by the sentiment anyway, as the sentiment lacked the understanding he wanted, even if it was pleasant.

He wasn't good around other people- the only people he was truly comfortable around were his two brothers. Even his younger brother he was still often uncomfortable around- especially when he'd stare at him; the triplet wondered sometimes if the twin was taunting him or purposely trying to make him feel self conscious.

Truthfully, he was nervous about visiting Earth, especially without his brothers with him. He stuck out in a way the twin didn't seem to understand- or maybe he just didn't care. He felt unsightly- and as his temper died down over time, he cared more and more about it because he felt he had no way to deal with it.

He was irritated. He took a deep breath, crossing his arms and looking out the side window without a word. Silently, he manually regulated his breathing, taking deep breaths to calm himself down, though he hardly felt it necessary. The last thing he wanted was to make a fool of himself away from home, especially when the twin had planned the trip for fun. He managed to calm himself down a little, but still didn't look away from the window.

"Well, forget about it." The twin said let out a short sigh and smiled to himself without another word on the subject.

 

Landing and concealing the pod should have been the hard part. The twin briefly considered landing it underwater- it was water proof with a self draining system, but the triplet reminded him that while the pod would be fine, their luggage would not. They'd both brought a bag with some gear in them- umbrellas, emergency shock weapons and emergency food. The twin had brought some leftover valid currency with him, as well as things to trade for more money if need be. Like a lot of planets close to their home world, people on earth had their soft spots for mind altering substances, which always made for great trade. The triplet had his doubts about the safety of such transactions and hoped they wouldn't be necessary- not that he was aware that the twin had brought anything for trade.

They ultimately decided on landing in a large, dense cornfield a relatively short distance from their destination. Making it to the road meant catching a taxi to the shore, or simply walking there if they were close enough, where the twin was planning on taking them.

It was warm, only threatening to get warmer as the sun went up. The twin soon picked up on the fact that the triplet was oddly silent- unsure if he was angry or if the heat was wearing him down a little. He hoped he hadn't made a mistake in bringing them here. Awkwardly, the twin reached over to grab his older brother's hand, pressing his thumb into the triplet's palm. After a few moments, the triplet gently held the twin's hand in his, as if reaching a wordless understanding. The silence was still there, but it was more enjoyable and less less tense than it was before.

Most of the journey was over- from the road, the pier was relatively close by. The pod did not have much leeway with drifting from its destination, but travelling on foot was a different story. A large parking garage was the first bit of civilization they came across- and the twin opted to walk through it rather than around it. The air was damp, but the shade was chilling and refreshing. The triplet still had his hand gently wrapped around his younger brother's hand as they walked leisurely, enjoying the shade for as long as they could.

"What time do you reckon it is?" The triplet asked, ending the long but comfortable silence.

"Maybe late noon. Wishful thinking." The twin answered, paused, then perked up.

"I figured we could get some food. Most stores and restaurants are indoors."

"Isn't that normal?" The triplet chuckled quietly. "That's how it is at home too."

"I just meant out of the sun."

The triplet smiled and squeezed his younger brother's hand gently. "I know, I know."

A couple cars drove past them slowly, trying to find places to park. The twin slowed his walking speed down and carefully watched around him for signs of other people. Noticing a group of men under a dim light a little ways away from them, the twin kneeled down to get something out of the bag he'd brought with them.

"Wait here for a minute. I need to ask for directions." He spoke softly.

"Can't I come with you?"

"I want you to stay with our bags." The twin took off briskly- his elder brother frowned, watching him curiously, as he approached the small group of men. The triplet couldn't make out the conversation by any means, but he watched carefully as one of the men signaled towards the exit as they kept talking. The twin held something out and the men paused for a moment before seeming to rummage through their pockets, exchanging something with the twin amicably. The twin bowed and briskly walked back to the triplet, smiling and picking up his bag.

"That's how you do business."

"What do you mean?" The triplet asked, confused as they walked towards the parking garage's exit. He was feeling a lot better due to the break in the shade, cheering up in the process.

"People here get addicted on anything you give them, especially meds and whatnot they can't get easily." The twin shoved a sizable fold of cash into his breast pocket as they walked. "I mean, that's why our sector's economy is so great. We do great business with a lot of other planets."

The triplet sighed sharply. "Alright, I don't want to hear anymore." He smiled over at his younger brother. In general, the discussion and use of the drugs and medicine they manufactured in their sector made him uncomfortable. He knew it was a brutal business, learning more than he'd care to learn when they went to the laboratory last. A lot of the crystals they'd manufacture and sell could be comparable to cocaine, but vary much more in potency. Most of what they made could easily kill a human man, but a lot of it was watered down to procure an incredibly mild high.

The triplet paused. "Why did you have that with you?"

The twin tapped his pocket. "To pay for our trip, duh. Why else?"

The triplet sighed and smiled, realizing it was a bit of a presumptuous and unnecessary question.

"We're immune to it anyway, in case you were getting at that you thought I was going to use it."

"Well, _you're_ immune." The triplet added. "You and your brother. You were made to be unreceptive to almost everything our planet manufactures. Father didn't think of that when they made... us."

The twin looked over at him and swallowed nervously, aware he'd just brought up something that made the triplet uncomfortable. Silently, he tried his best to battle his curiosity- he wanted to ask the triplet to explain further on what he meant, if he had a past history with drug abuse.

"I'm sorry." The twin said quietly. "I didn't mean anything by it. I know you were joking."

The triplet reached back over for the twin's hand as they continued walking towards the exit.

The sun was nearly blinding as they reached the exit. The exit led on the path to the boardwalk. The boardwalk was full of people.

The triplet paused for a second, quickly gathering himself before they continued. Though the sun was bright, there was a pleasant breeze and it wasn't quite as hot as either of them had expected it to be.

The shore was visible along the boardwalk- the ocean was calm and blue. The twin's face broke into an excited smile as he looked around. He had missed earth, but more importantly he was excited to visit the ocean. He looked over at his elder brother, who was looking around nervously, seeming a bit more tense than he was before.

"Are you worried?" The twin asked softly.

"It's... just a lot of people."

"So?" The twin let out a short chuckle. "We're people too."

"Yeah. But one of us has a habit of sticking out."

The twin looked around at the groups of people who walked around them- thankfully, no one paid either of them any mind.

"Well, that doesn't seem to be the case." The twin looked up at his elder brother, skeptically. "I mean, people here walk around in animal costumes for no reason. Some people run around completely fucking naked." He paused. "And I certainly see people taller than you, no offense."

"None taken." The triplet's expression softened as he took the words to heart. Maybe he had nothing to worry about- and it would be a shame to worry when they were here for their own enjoyment.

They ducked into an indoor shopping center after walking around a while to get out of the sun, talking amongst each other cheerfully. The twin was relieved that things seemed to have turned around- it seemed like a new experience to look up and see his elder brother cheerful like he currently was.

To kill time, they ducked into a record store in the outlet they were in. Despite enjoying themselves, the twin was hoping the sun would go down soon. He figured if they had some sort of dinner after they were done looking around that they would be busy until the sun went down. The sun going down meant less people out near the ocean.

Rows of CDs and vinyls lined the store, with wired headphones intermittently placed in every genre. The twin picked a pair up and cautiously lifted them over his head to listen to what was playing. He frowned after a few moments of silently deciding he didn't like what he heard, before placing the headphones back. He looked up at his elder brother, squinting curiously when they made eye contact.

"What is it?" The triplet asked.

"How do you hear? I mean... you know, you don't have ears. I think?" He let out a nervous chuckle to show he was joking around.

"I don't know, I never thought about it." The triplet reached for the headphones, holding them to either side of his head, then frowning down at his younger brother in an equal amount of confusion as he had. "Yeah, I can hear that. I don't know." Much to the twin's relief, he laughed. The twin wasn't sure if it was an appropriate question to ask.

"This is punk rock? It's alright. I like it." He put the headphones gently back down on their holder. "I don't know anything about music. You won't be surprised to hear me and my brother did nothing but blast metal."

The twin's eyes widened a little. "I am surprised. That's not something I knew." He smiled, gently picking up a CD from the section in front of him, pretending to read the back label. "I like finding things out about you."

"That's a sweet sentiment. Thank you." The triplet seemed skeptical, as if unsure whether his younger brother was being serious or not. The triplet could never see anything he's personally done as surprising or interesting- which never particularly bothered him, but he'd quickly get embarrassed if asked to share interesting details about his life.

They spent a little while longer looking through records together, through band shirts and memorabilia. They bought some CDs that that the triplet seemed interested in, as well as a few black band t-shirts. The triplet seemed to enjoy the novelty of bringing back some souvenirs; the twin not as much, solely because his elder brother seemed to be enjoying himself, and so he considered the possibility of making more trips in the future.

With some difficulty, they found seating at a restaurant. Every place seemed to be busy around this time of day. They sat across from each other at a booth- the triplet's eyes darting around nervously. The twin rested his chin in his hands and frowned. Looking out the tinted window he could see it was starting to get dark, much to his relief. The sun was out two to three times as long as it was on their planet- and though it wasn't harmful in any way, it was tiring. They'd often wake up after the sun had gone down, sleeping for the entirety of it being up.

It was hard to keep track of the day night cycle here, but as time passed, they both seemed to be a bit rejuvenated. As their food was brought out to them, a loud verbal fight broke out on the other side of the restaurant, drawing the attention of almost everyone. The triplet chuckled, turning his attention back to his food and slowly enjoying his meal. Despite the twin's reassurance, he felt some residual uneasiness stemming from his fear of standing out, so the distraction was a relief to him. The twin watched him fondly, aware to this being the case, so he smiled and said nothing.

The large crowds seemed to mostly disperse by the time they left- and there was a pleasant salty breeze in their place. They went down onto the beach, walking along the shoreline. The ocean was calm, but the air around it was chilling. The twin shivered involuntarily. His elder brother smiled, squeezing his shoulder gently.

"It is nice here, isn't it?" The triplet said cheerfully as they walked. The atmosphere seemed to be winning over him.

"Well yeah, that's why I wanted to bring you here." The twin frowned playfully as he looked up at his elder brother. "I don't know, I thought it would be nice."

"It is. Thanks for thinking of me."

The twin smiled to himself, then paused to look around. They were far enough from the boardwalk that most if not all people were out of view. Some large rocks protruded out of the sand, far enough frmo the water's reach. He carefully placed his bags behind one of them, then bent down to take off his shoes. His elder brother frowned and watched him curiously before placing his bags down as well.

"What's one thing you always wanted to do, but never did?" The twin asked curiously as he stepped foot in the water.

"I don't know. Are you expecting a certain answer? I never thought about it. I feel like this is a trick question." His elder brother responded, confused.

The water was extraordinarily cold compared to the warm sand, but he slowly got used to it- or so he thought. He walked a few feet out into the water, which was now below his knees, and shivered uncomfortably.

"I was just trying to make conversation. Come on, join me." He smirked and looked back at his elder brother, who was awkwardly watching him a few feet from the water's edge. The twin tried to get used to the water, trying to conceal the fact he was cold.

" _You_ come on, you're going to get sick." The triplet laughed. "I know how much you love the cold."

Rolling his eyes, the twin took his shirt off, balled it up and, to the best of his ability, attempted to throw it at the triplet. He missed by several feet and the shirt landed on the shoreline, and the water ebbed it back to him. He reached for it and threw it again- and now that it had the weight of the water in it, he successfully threw it onto the shore.

"Good thing we bought those shirts, I guess." The triplet said as he tossed the soaking shirt next to their gear and took off his own shoes. The twin smiled cheerfully as he painfully receded deeper into the water.

"Come on, don't go any further." The triplet said as he walked out into the water. For every step he took towards the twin, the twin stepped back further into the water. The triplet stopped when the water was up to his thighs, looking unsure about getting his shirt wet.

By the time the water was up to the twin's chest, he'd become used to the temperature and was comfortable. He reached his arm out, beckoning his elder brother out deeper into the water.

"I don't want to get my shirt wet."

"Great, take it off then. That's what I did."

The triplet laughed nervously. "I don't think so. A lot of good that did you, anyway. Taking it off and throwing it into the water."

"It's the thought that counts." The twin frowned as he bent down a little. The ends of his hair touched the water. "I can't think of anything more uncomfortable than being weighed down by a wet shirt, though."

"Being half naked in public, for one." The triplet responded uneasily, hoping his younger brother would drop the subject.

"There's no one here but me."

The triplet sighed loudly and frowned, trying to find something else to focus on. Unfortunately, the harder he tried to find something to change the subject to, the more impossible it seemed.

The twin watched him very carefully as he sank slightly deeper into the water. He didn't particularly like getting his hair wet unless he could dry it soon after, but it was inevitably going to get wet anyway.

"Is your collar waterproof?" He asked curiously, keen on the fact he was making the triplet uncomfortable, but not entirely willing to drop the subject.

"Yes." The triplet answered matter-of-factly.

"How long can you hold your breath?" The twin asked.

"I don't know. I guess as long as I have to."

The twin smirked. "That doesn't have any hidden meaning, does it? You didn't go through some period of time where you were forced to hold your breath, did you?"

"No, no." The triplet chuckled, relieved at the turn of the conversation. "The opposite, I guess."

"Do you even have to breathe?"

"I'm not a reptile."

"Do you mean a fish?" The twin covered his mouth as he laughed. "Reptiles breathe. They have lungs. Fish don't."

The triplet felt his face go a little red from his answer, but the twin laughing over it was endearing to him. To his defense, their planet didn't have much wildlife- and though it was classified in a lot of the same ways that it was classified on Earth, it wasn't important to the ecosystem in any way, so it wasn't common knowledge.

The twin took an audible, deep breath and ducked his head under water, quickly going out of view from the triplet.

"Come on, at least stay where I can see you." The triplet replied, looking around in the approximate area the twin had went under water. When he saw nothing, he sighed, slowly going deeper into the water to approach the spot where the twin was. He wasn't worried, of course, but he felt awkward standing in the water by himself. Most of his shirt was soaked through now, which was partly relieving to him- now he had no reason to take it off.

The twin surfaced with a quiet gasping breath another ten feet further out into the water, rubbing his eyes before looking over at his elder brother and laughing cheerfully.

"Come on, come here." He spoke up, happily. "You already ruined your shirt."

"Ruined? It's just wet." The triplet smiled as he replied, swimming further out into the water to meet the twin.

"Alright, you got what you wanted."

"That depends on what you think I want." The twin replied with a grin, attempting to move his soaking wet hair out of his face. His hair clung to his skin and made him feel mildly uncomfortable.

"Out of all the things I brought with me, a hairband was not one of them."

"That's a shame, huh?" The triplet tried stifling a laugh as he splashed water in the twin's face a bit harder than necessary, undoing the two minutes' worth of work he'd done getting the hair out of his face. The twin tried his best to conceal a smile, ultimately ducking his head back under the water and disappearing again.

The triplet sighed contentedly as he looked around the near area. It had gotten dark by now, and so it was near impossible to see under the water. The sky was crystal clear and other than the sound of the ocean, it was silent.

The twin emerged a little further out, parting his soaking wet hair out of his face so he could see. He grinned in the triplet's direction, swimming back over to him rather than beckoning him to swim out to meet him.

Audibly taking a deep breath, the triplet dove under the water. Aware that he could hold his breath for much longer than necessary, he briefly considered scaring the twin, but decided against it. Still, he remained submerged for a fairly long amount of time, the twin looking around to try and find out where he'd gone. Suddenly, the twin felt a pull on his legs as he was gently pulled under water by his elder brother.

He could see far less under water than he could above it. Squinting, he reached a hand out. His elder brother took his hand, pulling him back up to the surface where the twin gasped for air.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" The triplet asked light heartedly, afraid he might have caught the twin offguard, pulling hi under before he could hold his breath.

"No, but I could have used a little warning before you pulled me down."

"Consider us even, then." The triplet pushed the twin's hair our of his face, tucking it behind his ears gently. He paused, gently holding the back of his hand against the twin's cheek.

"You're cold." The triplet frowned, hesitantly taking his hand away.

"No, I'm okay."

The triplet paused, taking the twin's hand and feeling his palm. "Your skin. It's cold."

"I'm alright. I don't feel cold." The twin frowned slightly- he felt fine and had gotten used to the water relatively quickly.

He gently held the triplet's hand up to his cheek and closed his eyes, sighing contentedly at the warmth.

"Hey, let's get back to shore." The triplet said gently, hand still on the twin's cheek. "I've got those shirts from earlier we can put on to get warm and dry.

"Okay." The twin answered drearily after a few moments. He would have argued to stay out in the water longer, but he had admittedly started to get a little tired. The triplet gently took his hand and led him back to the shore where they changed into dry shirts far away from the water's reach.

The twin sighed contentedly as he sat down in the sand, stretching before laying down on his back, looking up at the stars.

"I'll drive us back home. You're tired." The triplet said gently, laying down on his back a few feet away from his younger brother.

"I don't know. I'm okay." The twin tilted his head towards his elder brother.

They both fell into a comfortable silence, watching the stars in the sky- though every few moments the twin's eyes would dart over to look at the triplet.

"Hey..." The twin said calmly. His elder brother turned his head to face him and smiled calmly.

"Yeah?"

"I..." The twin frowned, as if having difficulty putting his thoughts into words. He took a deep breath before continuing, his elder brother patiently watching him, smiling.

"I didn't mean to belittle you before we left this morning."

The triplet sighed sympathetically. "Don't give it a second thought. We're out here enjoying ourselves."

"No, I'm serious." The twin looked back up at the sky. "It was selfish of me to think in the way I did. Not everything's about me."

"This is about you, though. Well, _for_ you." The triplet replied with a sigh. "I don't want to embarrass you."

"Please." The twin smiled as he looked back up at the sky.

"I'm serious." He paused. "I want to be someone you can be proud of. And I... god forbid, want to be able to protect you if something happens. I don't know."

After a few moments of silence, the triplet continued. "God, I'm a mess. I just want to fix that. It's not like getting up a little early is a sacrifice."

"Alright, I get you." The twin turned onto his side to face his elder brother, sweeping his damp hair out of his face, only to have the breeze blow it back where it was. "Just... wake me up when you get up. I don't like getting up alone. I'm sorry."

"Of course." The triplet smiled over at him and sighed contentedly. He did feel a fair amount of relief that the twin had brought the topic back up.

The twin extended his arm towards the triplet, who was well out of arm's reach. The triplet chuckled quietly, meeting him halfway and extending his own arm to put his hand over the twin's hand. It was still alarmingly cold to the touch. He frowned as he squeezed his hand gently.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah. Of course." The twin replied quietly, closing his eyes. His elder brother sat up straight, moving a little closer to him, still keeping a protective hold of his hand.

"Hey, how about we head back to the pod? I'd love to come back here again. I had fun."

The twin smiled and nodded faintly, but made no effort to get up.

"I think the heat took it out of us," The triplet said, picking up both of their bags and putting them on his back before carefully picking the half-awake twin up to carry him up on his back as well. "So maybe next time, we sleep in instead of getting up early. How's that sound?"

The twin sighed contentedly, weakly wrapping his arms around his elder brother's chest to keep himself in place as he walked. Despite being about to fall asleep, he smiled at the thought of coming back, taking comfort in knowing the day wasn't a complete irredeemable disaster.

He had long since fallen asleep by the time they'd returned to the pod. Careful not to wake him, the triplet placed him in the passenger's seat and set a course for home.


	26. Chapter 26

The twin squinted as he woke up- eyes adjusting to the relative darkness of the pod they were travelling in. He turned his head to look over at his elder brother, who had his eyes closed and arms crossed as he let the pod pilot them home. At most, the twin must have been out for an hour if the pod was still navigating for home.

His elder brother looked peaceful in his sleep, and so the twin didn't want to wake him. He brought his knees up and hugged them, feeling a bit chilled. He already missed the atmosphere of Earth, especially at this time of year- the climate was hot and humid, something he'd grown accustomed to.

The triplet opened his eyes and otherwise didn't move, perhaps awake the whole time they were going home. He looked over at his younger brother, facial expression softening when he saw he was awake.

"I thought you were sleeping." The twin said drearily after a few moments of silence. "You looked peaceful."

"Nah," His elder brother replied, stretching his arms before leaning forward to check one of the displays in the pod. "I don't trust these things to pilot themselves. At least not yet." He chuckled quietly. "It's got to prove itself to me first."

"It's fine. We've flown them all over."

"Maybe you have, but I haven't."

The twin turned his head forward and closed his eyes. "That's fair."

 

He was awakened by his elder brother shaking his shoulder gently from outside the pod some time later. Slightly disoriented over the fact he'd falling back asleep, he frowned as he struggled to open his eyes.

"We're back." He said, squatting next to the open door to be eye level with his younger brother. "Come on, let's get some actual sleep. It's still nighttime.

"It's always nighttime," the twin said as he stretched and drearily stepped out of the pod, holding his hand out to help his elder brother to his feet. "I've never needed a shower so badly in my life. My hair is so dry."

"You're fine, you're fine," The triplet said with a sympathetic chuckle.

"Oh, I'm really not. There's nothing I want more than to wash my hair as soon as possible."

They stepped into the dimly lit house, the triplet putting their bags next to the sofa.

"That's fair, I guess."

 

He towel dried his hair to the best of his ability after washing it, afraid that he might wake his elder brother if he had fallen asleep. Carefully stepping back into the house revealed this to be the case, the triplet was fast asleep on the sofa where he'd been sat before.

Not particularly desiring to sleep alone, the twin grabbed his pillow and blanket from the bedroom and laid down on the floor next to the sofa, quickly falling asleep before he could even register how exhausted he was.


	27. Chapter 27

The triplet had comfortably settled into the routine of waking up a little early to exercise- only now he’d taken to waking up his younger brother as well, per his request. With as much excitement as was possible for someone who had just woken up, the twin would start breakfast and coffee while the triplet went through his own routine. The twin didn’t question his motives since they had taken the trip to Earth, but his elder brother seemed happy with what he was doing.  
  
They sat across from each other at the kitchen table, enjoying the quiet and drinking coffee. The twin nervously tried to oppress a sigh as he watched his elder brother.

“Can I ask you about something? Without you getting angry.”

“Why would I get angry?” The triplet answered with a small chuckle as he took a sip from his mug.

“You’ll know when I ask you.” The twin said, biting his lips as the triplet calmly looked up at him and waited for him to continue.

“No, I just wanted to ask about your collar.” The twin’s eyes trailed down to his elder brother’s neck as he sought to break eye contact, afraid of him getting upset.

“Well, what do you want to ask?”

The twin frowned; he had hoped the triplet wouldn’t just return a question.

“I mean, what does it _do,_ exactly? Does it sedate you? Is it some sort of mind control?”

The triplet lightheartedly cringed at the question. “Geez, no. We aren’t living in a sci-fi novel.”

The twin watched him carefully, expecting him to continue on with an actual answer.

“I guess it calms me down if I’m upset? I don’t know.”

“So it does _something_.” The twin said, pleased the conversation was going somewhere. His smile disappeared as he continued talking. “Does it affect how you act? How you feel?”

The triplet sighed. He set himself up for a conversation he didn’t want to have.

“I don’t know.” He felt like it was a lie, that he did in fact know but didn’t want to admit it. He looked at his younger brother with a nervous, sympathetic smile. He felt awkward, partially because it was an uncomfortable conversation, and partially because he didn’t really have the answers. He didn’t know the technical workings behind the collar, only that it was programmed to help calm him down when he felt unreasonably angry. If it did anything else or had any long lasting side effects, he wasn’t made aware of them.

“So what would I have to do to convince you to get it removed?”

The triplet ran a hand down his face, unable to hide that he was uncomfortable.

“Alright, let’s drop it. It helps me and I want to keep it, let’s leave it at that.”

“Come on, you’re not an animal.” The twin’s tone quickly became insensitive.

“It’s to protect you.” The triplet became irritated with the line of questioning and it reflected in his voice.

“I don’t need protection.” The twin rose to his feet as he continued to talk. “Protection from what? You? You’re not a wild animal.”

“ _Yes you do_.” His elder brother said sternly, trying not to get himself worked up. “What would happen if something set me off and I hurt you? I’m not above admitting that can happen. It’s happened before, and I’m not proud of it. The least I can do is admit it’s happened and do what I can to stop it from happening in the future.”

“It’s not like a collar is going to stop you.” The twin struggled not to talk over him. “I don’t even know where that damned remote you gave me is. I’ve never used it, and obviously, I never will.”

“I put it in your bags when we went to Earth. You have it.”

The twin paused and frowned, staring at his elder brother’s neck. “Why?”

“Why do you think? Same reason I have it in the first place.”

“Were you expecting something bad to happen?”

“Expecting? No. But I planned for it because I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if something happened to you.”

The twin’s facial expression softened before turning to a confused frown. “Did you want to go to Earth with me or were you just humoring me? Because if you didn’t want to go you could have said so.”

His elder brother watched him carefully. He sighed quietly, feeling a little remorse for getting so heated earlier, but glad that the topic had changed.

“Of course I wanted to go. It was nice to go somewhere with you. Hell, I’d love to go back some time.”

The twin sighed audibly, sitting back down at the table and propping his head up with his hands. He looked down at the table, smiling slightly, but with a distinct look of sadness and deep contemplation.

“Would you do it _for me_?” He asked calmly, backtracking on the conversation.

“This _is_ for you.” The triplet replied sternly, trying to hide his irritation.

 

 

 

After a lot of uncomfortable coercing, the two were off to the laboratories to get the triplet’s collar removed. The collar was fastened securely in a way that it couldn’t be removed by either of them. The tools needed to put it on were also needed to take it off.

The triplet made no effort to hide his discontent, though the twin barely noticed it anyway. Only when they got to the labs did the twin feel that something may have been off. He looked up at his elder brother, who was visibly upset and purposely avoiding eye contact. They waited outside the laboratory entrance to be escorted inside.

“It’ll be alright. I bet it’ll feel good to get that damned thing off.” The twin smiled up at his elder brother, who neglected to respond or react to the comment at all. The twin’s heart sank nervously as he realized he may have upset his elder brother when that wasn’t his intent.

They were met at the door by the same man who had talked them through signing papers a while ago. He was in charge of this branch of the laboratory. He bowed his head a little nervously as he ushered them to follow him down a corridor.

“Wait here. For a moment. If that’s alright.” The man gestured to a few seats outside of he door they had stopped at. The twin sighed nervously as he sat down- the triplet sitting after him, crossing his arms, faced slightly away from him.

“Are you upset with me?” The twin asked quietly. When he received no answer, he gently put his hand on his elder brother’s shoulder, who firmly removed it.

“Please. Don’t. Thanks.”

The twin was more surprised over the fact that the triplet sounded more distressed than angry. He studied him for a few seconds sadly before returning to face forward in his chair.

After what felt like an hour of awkward silence, the scientist opened the door timidly and invited them in.

The room was dimly lit- to the point where the twin couldn’t see much of anything other than a few control panels near the far wall. What looked to be an elevated chair mounted in place was about in the middle of the room with a multitude of tools surrounding it.

Two other men were in the room with them. The twin wondered what kind of process would require such additional help. Surely there couldn’t be anything more simple than removing a collar and sending them both home.

 “You’re sure you want to do this?” The scientist said as he gestured for the triplet to take a seat in the chair.

 “Yes.” The twin replied before his elder brother had a chance to. The triplet sighed audibly as he sat down. The twin’s eyes had adjusted a little to the darkness, but he still felt it was unnecessarily dark.

 “Lean forward as far as possible with your face parallel to the ground. If you can.”

 The triplet did as he was requested, the scientist parting his hair off and away from his neck. The twin frowned as he watched, strangely uncomfortable with watching someone touch his elder brother.

 The triplet folded his hands together in front of him as the scientist attached some sort of metal clamp to the back of the collar. The clamp was wired into one of the machines next to them. A red light flashed on the collar, and with a snapping noise, it parted itself from his neck and fell to the floor with a loud metal crash.

 After a few moments, triplet started to raise his head back up- but before he could sit up straight, one of the other scientists in the room held a metal rod into his side, pressing a button. There was a bright flash, accompanied by a loud uncomfortable crackling, as the triplet recoiled and quickly fell onto the floor with a thud unconscious as the scientist withdrew his weapon.

 The ordeal only took a few seconds. The twin rushed over, kneeling down beside him, shaking him recklessly to no avail. He paused, motionless, still holding onto his brother.

 “Why?”

 “He’s alright, he’ll wake up soon.” The scientist said, his nervousness reflected in his voice. “We couldn’t take any chances with him reacting to having the collar off.”

 “He’s not dangerous. You can’t treat him like an animal.”

 “This was for your safety,” The scientist continued as he picked up the collar off the floor. “He’ll be fine.”

 The twin held his ear to his elder brother’s back to hear him breathing. He paused, gritting his teeth as he lifted his head up, his bewilderment of the situation turning quickly to rage as he watched the scientist.

 “I’ll have your head for this.”

“I apologize, but I assure you he’s going to be fine when he wakes up. We couldn’t take a chance of him lashing out and hurting you.” The scientist tried to hide that he was nervous to no avail- his voice shook as he replied.

 The twin felt his eyes well up- and knowing it was too dark for anyone to notice, he didn’t care. “How long will he be out?”

 “Two hours, maybe four at most.”

 “I’m going to speak to the council about this.”

 “Please,” The scientist replied desperately, cutting the twin off. “We act in your best interest. That’s what we’re doing.”

 “Well, we’re not staying here. Arrange transportation to bring us both home. Now.”

 “Please reconsider for your own safety.” The scientist pleaded uneasily with him. “You should stay somewhere monitored where your safety can be assured- just until he’s conscious and aware of the situation.”

 “Why are you so bent on thinking he’s dangerous?” The twin felt himself shake with rage as he asked, still firmly holding onto his elder brother.

 “ _Because he is_.” The scientist replied. “He may have originally sought us out on his own initiative, and that’s excellent, but he has anger issues that he cannot control. Not only did he describe them in depth when we were talking about the best course of action to fix such behaviour, but he actively demonstrated them when he came here on his own.”

 The twin watched the scientist with disgust, feeling tears roll down his cheeks.

 “He’s actively taking steps to protect you.”

 “Tell me how the collar worked.” The twin felt his voice shake with anger as he spoke.

 “It stimulates the release of dopamines with magnetic energy when your brother is angry. It doesn’t harm him in any way. If the collar overloads, it will shock him. That pain is obviously temporary.” The scientist paused to sigh. “But the absense of the collar might cause problems, hopefully short term problems. That’s why we neutralized him.”

 “ _Neutralized him._ ” The twin echoed, gritting his teeth as he made no effort to stop himself from crying. He ran his fingers through his elder brother’s hair, pressing the back of his hand against his neck. “If anyone’s an animal, it’s you.” He swallowed, looking up at the scientist.

 “Arrange us a ride home. Now.”

 “I implore you to let us keep both of you here to make sure you’re both safe. Once we’ve gauged his temperament we can get you both back on your way.”

 “Strange that this is only an issue because you shocked him unconscious as a kneejerk reaction. I will not ask again.”

 The scientist sighed, bowing his head in compliance before leaving the room with his two men.

 The twin spoke slowly under his breath as he watched them.

 

“ _I will have you killed for this_.”


End file.
